༺ Life Is A Box of Chocolates ༻

     Though she hadn't slept well, her day was turned around when Megara finally got around to opening the card Ricky planted in her locker.  They had also traded locker combinations like Ashlyn and Big Red (theirs was much more accidental than the other couples) so Ricky's DIY heart-shaped Valentine sat on the tallest shelf, eye level with the girl.  She smiled as she ran her dark red fingernails along it, reading it slowly as if personally injecting each word into her veins.

     Maybe not a love letter, but close enough.  It was even purple, her favorite color.

     "Okay, everyone, gather around," Miss Jenn instructed.  "We have got a two-hour window before the storm is expected to hit, and I intend to use every minute of it."

     The theatre gang had met up after school to start production on their musical, and just like Megara had anticipated, they were starting with the biggest and hardest dance number first.  "Big, splashy group numbers always succeed at the Menkie Awards," Carlos said as he stood next to Miss Jenn like usual.  Everyone else was scattered between the bleachers or standing on the sides.  Megara was a tad late, so when she rushed in, she squirmed to find a seat on a wooden block next to Ricky.  "So we need to workshop a punchy, breathtaking number that will put us in the number one spot.  As our head choreographer, I am so happy to announce that today we will, at last, begin rehearsing one of the most showstopping, iconic, and bar-raising numbers of the entire show.  Be Our Guest."

     "Hey, thanks for the Valentine," Megara leaned over, whispering as best as she could as to not disturb the group, but they were already too busy whispering amongst themselves at Carlos's revelation.

     "Yeah, well, thank you for the dinner and cookies," Ricky whispered back, rubbing his stomach.  "You're gonna have to make those more often.  I fear I ate the leftovers at lunch."  Megara smiled.

     "Yeah, it has to be Be Our Guest, guys," Gina nodded, rubbing her hands together.  Carlos turned and quickly flashed her a glare, which did not go unnoticed by Megara.

CARLOS: What?  Look, I know I asked Gina to be my co-choreographer, but I kinda meant it like, "I'm the choreographer and she's the co-choreographer.  Like how there's a pilot and a co-pilot.

GINA: He called me his "co-pilot"?  When I finally agreed to being a co-choreographer, I thought that meant we'd be equals.  You know, and by equal, I mean, I would choreograph most of the show and he'd, I don't know, clap.

KC: Listen... I'm just here to coordinate the music.  I don't know anything about co-pilots or flying.

MEGARA: I don't care who does what or who is in charge of who, but once they start making my job difficult — and I know they will — don't be surprised when it turns into a recording of Desperate Housewives in here.  I should know, Rita will be the ringleader.  She loves that show.

     "Before we begin, I'm going to tell you a little story about hospitality," Miss Jenn said, bringing everyone's attention back to her.  "Once when I was a little girl, my mom and I heard a clatter come from the kitchen.  We thought it was a burglar.  So my mom ran over, hog-tied the man, and promptly called the police.  As we waited for the cops to come, I watched my mother place a bowl of iced tea next to his face.  Because, she said, until the police come and get him, he's still our guest."

     "Wow, that's really nice, Miss Jenn," Savannah nodded, leaning her arm over the piano in the room, awaiting the moment she would be needed as the singing dresser.

     Megara nodded.  "Did he get arrested?"

     "Megara!" Seb exclaimed in surprise, snapping his head towards the girl, who only widened her eyes in response.  Then he turned back to Miss Jenn.  "Wait, did he?"

     Miss Jenn shook her head.  "Turns out, it wasn't a burglar at all, just a repairman who entered the wrong unit.  But the point remains the same.  Just like our intruder, we need to make Belle and our entire audience feel welcome.  And with that, Carlos and Gina, take it away."

     "Thank you, Miss Jenn, that wasn't terrifying at all," Carlos shuddered.  Megara rolled her eyes as if she was annoyed, but the smile on her face said otherwise.

     "Okay, so, my vision to make this dance really soar is to stage wait for it, a Cancan-style dance that features a feather-dusting spectacle.  I don't know, it'll probably go a little something like—" Gina started doing a couple of smooth but intricate dance moves that made Megara glad she wouldn't be part of that dance number.

     "Absolutely!" Ashlyn agreed.

     "Interesting," Carlos said, avoiding eye contact with Gina.  Megara couldn't say she blamed him, she used to be intimated by Gina herself when she was new to the cool, but now that she was getting to know her, she realized it was due to a facade she had to put up to avoid getting hurt.  "I had a different path that's a little more elevated and less basic.  Think.  A noir-inspired performance that Lumiere guides our audience through the entire time."

     "M'kay," Gina said.  "But I actually spent a month in France once, so I kinda know this dance inside out."

     "And I choreographed all three of my sister's quinceanera dances, despite not getting one for myself, so I think I know how to twirl with a salad fork, okay?" Carlos snapped back, earning various shocked reactions from the entire cast sitting in front of them.

     "Okay!" Miss Jenn quickly interrupted them.  "You know what?  Let's stick a pin in Be Our Guest and brush up on Gaston.  EJ and Big Red, to the front of the room, please."

     "I think the feather duster brigade sounded cool," Ricky said as Gina sat down in front of him and Megara, clearly avoiding the open area near KC and Rita.

     "Really?" she asked.

     "Yeah.  What, do I need to send you a random box of chocolates to prove it?" he asked.

     Megara's eyes flickered over the two instantaneously trying to make sense of their conversation.  They didn't seem overly friendly with each other, and oddly enough their words seemed laced with a certain bitterness.  Before KC started dating Nini, the four of them would hang out all the time, and no animosity was ever created between Ricky and Gina.  On top of that, there was... a box of chocolates?!

GINA: Yes, I misinterpreted the whole chocolates thing.  I guess my mom decided not to send me a stuffed bear after all.  Thanks, Mom.  So yeah, I sent an embarrassing text on Valentine's Day, but Ricky and I totally cleared it up.  Obviously, I would never step on what he has with Meg.  It's all good.  It's actually kind of a running joke now between us. [she winces]  It's funny.

MEGARA: I must be running on Internet Explorer because why am I always the last person to find something out?  I'm the last person to find out about KC and Nini, I'm the last person to find out about Big Red's crush on Ash, I'm the last person to know about the homework, and now there's something that went down between Ricky and Gina?  And I only left him alone for one afternoon!

     "What are you guys talking about?" Megara finally asked, unable to hide her expression or thoughts any longer.  The bitterness between Ricky and Gina was so prominent that she swore she could stab it with a knife.

     "It's nothing," Gina quickly reassured her.

     "Wait, where's EJ?"  Miss Jenn asked.  Big Red and Megara looked confused, expecting to have been sharing the stage with him for rehearsal, but they had no clue where he was.  As Megara thought about it, she hadn't really seen a lot of him at all that day.  "Okay, well, if anyone sees EJ, would you please tell him that rehearsals are mandatory, even for soon-to-be college students who are obviously suffering from senioritis.  Megara, I hope you started on your lines."

     Megara stood up with a groan, rubbing her hands against her velour black bottoms.  Of course, she was also wearing the black zip-up hoodie to match, which really screamed "maiden" to her.  "Oh, he loves another woman, woe is me," she said in a dry tone as she approached the front of the room.

     Big Red and Megara had begun running over their parts of the song Gaston sings in the barn, including a short solo from the raven-haired girl herself when someone squealed out during a quiet part.

     "Nini!"

     Everyone quickly turned to the corner of the room where the girl peaked in.  "I don't wanna interrupt," Nini said sheepishly with a wide grin.  "I just needed one more group hug."

     "Hugs available!" Ashlyn exclaimed.

     Even though KC was sitting the farthest away from the door, she still flew across the room in a matter of split seconds.  "Oh my gosh, Nini.  I thought you'd be on the road back to YAC by now," she grabbed her girlfriend by the forearms as mostly everyone crowded around, trying to give Nini a squeeze as well.

     "Well, I wanted to see the whole crew one more time, so I got a later bus.  Plus, I had to bring you a kiss for the month of March," Nini explained with a smile.  

     "Oh, Sal-Robs," Megara dangled an arm over Nini's shoulders.  "You are just the sweetest thing ever."

     "Hey, your singing by the way is incredible," Nini nodded.  "How come I didn't know you could sing like that?"

     Megara shrugged.  "It's not something I really share with the world, sorry.  Hope you liked the rehearsal though.  This is probably the best it's going to get."

     Though she was grinning widely when her phone buzzed in her hand, Nini glanced at it, and her mood drastically changed.  "Oh, no.  My driver just canceled because of the snow, and the next car is 20 minutes away.  Great.  Watch me literally not make it back to school."

     "Hey, I could drive you?" KC quickly offered.  "I could grab Big Red's car.  Maybe, grab a kiss for the month of April.  Whatever."

     "Nonsense, honey, we're still in the middle of rehearsal," Miss Jenn cut in.  "I can take you to the bus station and then zip back to school.  Sound good?"

     "Yeah.  Yeah, that works," Nini nodded.

     Within no time, Nini was overlooking a slightly stressed drama teacher who was nearly ready to leave.  "Listen up, everyone," Miss Jenn stood in the doorway with a bag in her hand, and a scarf around her neck.  "I am going to step out for a little while to make sure that Nini catches her bus.  Please go back to workshopping Be Our Guest concepts until I return, and find a path forward.  I've asked Mr. Mazzara to pop in and make sure that you don't get too rowdy while I'm gone.  Thank you, Benjamin."

     With that, everyone bid their farewells to Nini again and waved them off.  However, the uneasy silence that filled the room fueled the unspoken agreement that they would need a lot more than something to "find a path forward".

     "Has anyone seen EJ?" Ashlyn asked around, almost everyone shaking their heads no.

     "Everybody, listen up.  Great news.  Gina and I agreed to joint custody of you all," Carlos announced to the group with Gina in tow beside him.

     "And here I was thinking we were going to have to settle this in court," Megara said dryly.  "Who gets us on weekends?"

     Her sarcasm went unnoticed and untouched by the choreographers and judging by the look on their faces, they were trying with everything in them to keep it together.  "We're gonna workshop our Be Our Guest visions on you guys separately before adding the dancers.  The winning version will then be decided in an anonymous vote.  Fun and easy.  Yay.  This number was inspired by my second-oldest sister's quince.  Theme, sultry jazz.  Sebastian, you may begin," Carlos explained, gesturing to their makeshift dancefloor as those for the dance number literally dragged their feet over.

     Just as Seb's fingertips graced the piano keys to begin rehearsal for real this time, a loud buzzing sound erupted overhead, only one note ringing throughout the room as the lights shut off.  "Oh, what was that?"

     "Maybe a power line went down."

     "Oh, no, you guys," Seb pulled out his phone from his pocket, worry draped over his face as the bright screen illuminated his face.  "I missed an alert from my Farmer's Alman app.  Salt Lake just got half a foot in half an hour.  My dad says the roads are completely closed."

     "Oh, my gosh, you guys, get out here!  This is insane!"

     The entire group rushed out into the hallways, facing the rest of the silence that dripped throughout the building.  "Are we the only ones stuck at school?"

     "Looks like every other club went home," Rita shrugged.

     "Oh God," KC ran a hand through her hair.  "I'm going to go check on Nini," she said, whipping out her phone and running off, presumably to either get better service or get some privacy.

     "Be careful!" Rita shouted after her.

     "I don't mind the idea of being stuck together all night."

     "All night?" Megara spun on her heel, trying to figure out who said that and why they thought it would be such a good idea.  The last time she was away from home overnight was during the accidental road trip she had taken with Ricky a month ago, and she felt he was thinking the same thing as her eyes met his in the sea of people.

     "Maybe we should hold each other for warmth?" Seb suggested, clearly unaware of any build-up or tension happening.

     "Okay, you guys," Gina shifted so she was standing in front of them.  "Listen up, folks.  We need to act fast and gather supplies in case this gets worse."

     "Love the commitment, Gina, but I don't think it's that serious," Carlos said.

     Gina pretty much ignored him.  "Rehearsal can wait.  Follow my lead.  Contact your parents every half hour, but conserve your phone batteries.  Waters, flashlights.  Let's move, people."

     Megara had pretty much always been a loner at heart, so when she had the opportunity to slip away from the group for some time to herself, she took it.

     Ruining into another kid was expectant, as everyone was kind of doing their own thing, but she didn't expect to run into EJ sitting on the steps of the stairs, quietly humming to himself and looking with his head down.  "Hey," she interrupted whatever process he was in the middle of, slightly startling him.  "Everyone's looking for you."

     EJ shrugged.  "Oh."

     Megara shuffled over to him, taking the liberty of sitting down on the staircase next to him, which made him shift over a little.  "Are you... feeling okay?"

     "Yes," EJ replied quickly.  "No... I don't know."  Megara remained quiet, letting him figure out which parts he was willing to say out loud to her without pressuring him.  She knew he would say what he was comfortable enough to her.  They had never been friends, even while he dated Savannah he remained somewhat doormat to her.  But Megara liked to think that even if EJ didn't know her, she surely knew him.  And at that moment, she knew something was wrong.  "I didn't get into Duke."

     Megara hadn't yet started worrying about which college she'd go to — assuming she went to one at all — but for someone like EJ, this was big.  She hadn't expected him to come right out and say it.  She sucked her teeth.  "Damn, EJ, I'm sorry."

     EJ just shook his head.  "I just got so excited... I don't know what my dad is going to say."

     Then it dawned on her, his father.  Savannah had briefly mentioned to her before about EJ's home situation, and mostly his dad.  She believed Savannah and EJ were a lot similar in those ways, as Savannah's dad was also a workaholic slash man in high power.  She wasn't sure if it was really her place, but she found herself asking anyway, "Can't he do something to help you get in?"

     EJ tilted his head and Megara knew right then she hit a sore spot.  "I'm not... sure that I want him to."

     Megara nodded, thinking about it.  "So, what does this mean for you?"

     EJ shrugged.  "I don't know.  I don't know anything anymore.  We're a Duke family, everyone is counting on me to continue the tradition."

     Megara gave him a small smile, and a tad awkwardly patted his shoulder, but it was a big gesture at the time.  "Sometimes... it's okay not to do the thing that everyone expects you to do.  It might be scary, but sometimes it's worth it to think about yourself first.  But... that's all I know."

     "Thanks, Meg," EJ rubbed his hands together, thankfully the heating in the building was still contained, or else they'd probably be a lot colder than they already were.  "Please... don't tell anybody about this."

     Megara furrowed her eyebrows.  "No, of course not."

     They sat in silence for a moment before EJ added on.  "You know, Lip talks about you all the time."

     Megara's throat ran dry.  "What?" she nearly choked on her own words.

     "I don't even think he notices how much.  It's so obvious that he likes you, but on the other hand... you and Ricky make a really good couple.  Sorry, I just meant you guys seem to be really good for each other."  Megara nodded, unsure of what else to say.  EJ, who was already stressed, kept talking.  "I miss having that with somebody.  I thought I did, but then I messed it all up.  Twice now.  I left Sav in the dust, and I just got so insecure when I saw that song Nini made for Ricky... no offense or anything."

     Megara was getting a little impatient with his ranting.  "So what dude?  Sav forgave you and would be your friend if you just talked to her like a normal person, and as for Sal-Robs, she dated Ricky for a year and you dated her for like, two days.  Just... get over yourself."

     "Oh, yeah, I should have... No, I'm sorry, I—"

     "Sorry, I don't know where that came from," Megara awkwardly admitted, cutting him off.  She then slowly rose to her feet, now looming over him.  "I was going to go raid the cafeteria, you wanna come with me or something?"

     She could have sworn he nearly laughed, but still, he shook his head.  "No, I'm okay, just be careful."

     Megara furrowed her eyebrows a tad.  "No, you be careful.  Call me if you need anything."

     "Oh, Gina, perfect," Big Red said as he ran around the corner, Ricky sighing at his side.  "We need a girl's point of view on something."

     "Dude, don't!" Ricky argued.

     Big Red shook his head and ignored him.  "Ricky is afraid to tell Megara something and I'm telling him he should."

     "Dude, it's not—"

     "What's the text?" Gina asked.

     "Big Red!" Ricky yelped, trying his best to warn Big Red not to say anything without explicitly saying why.  He knew Megara would never forgive him if he let Big Red let the cat out of the bag about their secretly fake relationship.

     Big Red nervously nodded, understanding he needed to watch his words carefully, and Gina watched as the boys shared an uneasy glance.  "Um, basically... he wants to tell her that he's happy she's following her dreams, but also he wishes that he was her dream, and wants a future with her.  I believe the word he used was: forever."

     "Mmm, yeah, don't ever text that," Gina shook her head.  "Or say it out loud, for that matter.  Ever."

     Although Ricky was embarrassed over Big Red confessing what his planned text said, he felt better about Gina not suspecting a thing.  His real dilemma was getting Megara to notice his feelings for her, but he was crushed by the idea of her rejecting him.  At least this way he had a piece of her, she was part of his life, even if he lied to himself every day about being okay with their (fake) relationship.

     "Thanks, we didn't mean to suck you into a whole thing," Ricky awkwardly shook his head.  Megara was always a tough subject for him.

     "Nah, it's all good," Gina said.  "I'm honestly glad I ran into you."

     "Why?" Megara's voice cut through the conversation being held as she surprised the three, tossing Big Red a carton of chocolate milk from the cafeteria casually as she inserted herself.  She unintentionally formed a square, not aware of how bad the tension was yet.

     "I found part of a Twix bar near my locker, and I can only assume it's Ricky's latest Valentine to me," Gina rolled her eyes, scoffing.  Megara frowned, knowing this was carried on from their fighting earlier and the box of chocolates Gina had mistakenly thought was from him.

     "I go big, Gina," Ricky said, also unaware of the uncomfortable feeling he was giving Megara by teasing Gina about it instead of clearing the air.  "You know that."

     Megara was about to say something — something rather loud — and cut the rudeness from them for good, but Ashlyn skipped down the hallway with KC following after her interrupting them yet again.  "Biggie, there you are.  Way to abandon the fam in a crisis!" Ashlyn exclaimed, wrapping her arm through Big Red's.

     Megara and Ricky shared an uneasy look.  Thinking about how they never looked that effortless as a couple.  Unknowingly, that was what the other wanted.

     "Hey, I was looking for you," KC swayed her arms as much as she could since her hands were deep into the pockets of her jeans.  "I kinda need to talk to you about something."

     "We're coming now," Big Red gave Ashlyn a smile before turning to Ricky.  "I still think it's a good idea."

     Ricky groaned, embarrassed.  "Whatever.  Shut up."

     "What is a good idea?" Megara asked.

     "Uh, it's this skating thing, don't worry about it," Ricky replied.

     Megara wouldn't admit it, but she took Ricky's words to heart more often than he thought.  She loved skating just as much as he did, what did he have to gain by leaving her out?  She gave him a solid nod, even if there was much she didn't understand.  "You guys all go ahead," she gave them the opportunity to clear the corner of the hallway out so she and KC could have some privacy.  Ricky hardly looked at her before turning his back to her and joining the others.

     The dark-haired Latina sighed, giving her undivided attention to KC.  "What plagues your mind, girl?"

     If she thought Ricky looked uneasy, she indeed had another thing coming with the vibe KC brought to the table.  "Um, it's kind of weird for me to say be saying this right now, but it's about Gina."

     "Oh, please tell me you're the one who gave her the box of chocolates," Megara found herself nearly pleading with her friend.

     "No... I got her the teddy bear."

     Megara's eyes nearly popped out of her head.  Sure, she had been joking about it and hoping there was another admirer for Gina that wasn't her quote-unquote boyfriend, but she didn't expect KC to outright say it.  Much less, do something so bold.  "I'm sorry, you got her what?"

     KC groaned, spinning around in a circle, trying with all her might to avoid the question at hand, but she was doing it very badly.  "She told me her mom always gets her teddy bears for Valentine's Day, it's their tradition, but it was looking like her mom didn't get her one, so when I had a minute, I went to the corner store and had one delivered to her house.  I thought she might like it, it came with a trophy.  You know, 'cause she's a winner?"

     "Why?"

     The girl shrugged, suddenly very interested in the pattern of the tile on the floor.  "I didn't want her to feel alone on the holiday.  Her mom must have sent the chocolates late that night, 'cause I got her the bear on my lunch break."

     "Yeah, well, she and Ricky had a conversation about being alone on the holiday, and then when the chocolates came, she thought he sent them.  Then he said something kinda mean to her, and it's kinda hard to appreciate your boyfriend shutting down other girls when he's being rude about it, so now our core four is a bit damaged.  And Gina thinks her mom got her the bear.  That's all I know."

     KC nodded slowly, intaking every word Megara said with caution.  "Right, I feared something like this would happen."

     Megara shook her head, confused.  "So you wanna let her believe Ricky gave her a box of chocolates?  Isn't that confusing?"

     "More confusing than getting a gift from a girl who has a girlfriend?"

     "KC, he's my boyfriend," Megara crossed her arms, bewildered at KC's audacity.  "You're letting two friends fight about a mistake you made.  And you're putting me in the middle too!"

     "Look, I'm sorry!  I really didn't think she would assume he would give her anything, no offense, Ricky just doesn't scream gift-giving boyfriend.  But if I'm being honest, being in the background is what I'm best at.  All the drama will play out."

     "You should tell her the truth," Megara said as sternly as she could, but it was hard being mad at KC.  "Soon.  It's not fair."

     "I will eventually," KC said.

     After a brief moment of silence, Megara decided she'd be better off on her own again like she was before.  "I am going to go look for supplies and stuff, you know as Gina said?" she said, earning a disappointed but not surprised look from KC as she left.

     A million thoughts swirled in Megara's head as she took the long way to her locker, and she felt a little guilty for not wanting to spend some time with her friends.  But the majority were just freaking out over no signal in the building, and Gina and Carlos were still fighting over the matter of Be Our Guest somewhere in the halls.

     "Hey, Megara," Phillip was at the opposite end of the hallway, walking towards her, and certainly halting her thoughts.

     "You," Megara pointed her finger at him.

     "Yup, me."  He wore baggy cargo pants with a white long sleeve and a matching white bandana covering his forehead, a signature look for him.  His green Nike's scuffed the floor as he basically strutted towards the girl.

     Megara, on the other hand, had been going to her locker to find a thicker sweater, as the lightweight white one with a bow tying it together on her chest was not doing much for her in this situation.  She didn't like skinny jeans as much, but she did like to tuck them into thigh-high boots.  "What are you doing here?"

     "I was in the bathroom when the power went out," Phillip explained.

     Megara shook her head.  "No, I meant here, by my locker."

     "Oh, well, I was looking for you.  I wanted to talk to you about something," he said, still coming towards her.

     "Well, now's not really a good time," Megara tucked her hair behind her ear.  "My phone is almost dead, and I haven't gone back to the bunker since the power went out, which is funny because I guess it's technically the best place to be since it's the bunker, and Gina and Carlos are probably scaring everybody with their arguing, and Sav probably is overdue for some emotional support—"

     She was cut off by Phillip taking her by the shoulder and moving her into an opened closet in the middle of the hallway, his shoe accidentally kicking the doorstopper as he joined her inside.  "For it not really being a good time to talk, you sure have a lot to say."

     Megara sighed.  "I'm sorry, today has just been very stressful for me.  But if you wanted to talk so badly, you didn't have to lock me in a closet."

     "Okay, true, I'm sorry, I was just dying to know if you were free this Friday," Phillip said.

     "I don't think any of us are going to be free until the play is over," Megara crossed her arms over her chest.  "And this is coming from someone who is just so overcome with joy for being Gaston's little pet."

     "Your sarcasm bites," Phillip commented, earning a thankful nod from Megara who didn't think anything was wrong with her sarcasm.  "And I meant after rehearsal.  I was wondering if you'd wanna go see another movie together?"

     "Why?" she asked.

     "A bit dense today, are we?" Phillip asked, causing her to soften up.

     Oh.

     "Oh, sorry, it didn't click," Megara shook her head embarrassed.  "Um, I probably can't, at least... not while I'm dating Ricky."

     This garnered Phillip's interest.  "Are you saying...?"

     Megara sunk her teeth into her bottom lip until she felt a sharp pain.  She couldn't believe she was doing this, sitting here, playing both of them like fiddles.  Isn't this what she came so far for?  This was always part of the plan, so why did she feel so bad about it?  Maybe because people aren't made to be played with like toys.

     She nodded.  He was looming over her, tall and brooding, and the small space in the closet was not helping at all.  "I just don't think it would be fair to him," she batted her eyelashes as best as she could.  The darkness wasn't helping at all, they could barely see each other.  "Not right now."

     "Well, Ricky can come with," Phillip suggested.  "Yeah, we could put together a little group, to hang out after rehearsal, that way, um, we can all spend time together and... bond."

     Megara nodded as her stomach churned at the idea.  "Yeah, sounds great," she reached for the doorknob, shaking it, but nothing happened.  "Uh, Cabot, I think it's stuck."

     Suddenly a movie date was the farthest thing from his mind as he turned to the door, trying and failing at opening it too.  Megara watched as he wrapped both hands around the doorknob and shook the door with his whole body weight.  "Shit."

     "It's taking everything in me not to say I told you so."

the award for biggest writers block goes to this chapter!
some lip content to make ur day brighter: