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      "Lexi, is this the part of the play where I steal Jake from Marta?" Cassie asked her younger sister.

     "No, Cassie, that's not in the play."

     "It is now!"

     "Who said that?" Suze looked out into the audience.  "Look, I wanna say, I get it.  Oh, God... I understand what you're going through."

     "I do not want to hear from you.  I lived it."

     Eliana placed her hand on her knee, turning and scanning the area around her, this time not just for Fez.  "Is Nate even here to see all this?" she wondered aloud.

     "Wait, Hallie steals Marta's boyfriend?"

     "I don't know how many times I have to say this," Cassie turned to the audience again.  "They were not fucking together."

     It's only a comfort to you, Cassie.

     "Yeah, not only that, but she was fucking him the entire time Marta was talking about getting back together with him," Maddy said from the audience, resting her forearms on the armchairs as she watched intently.

     "No... Why?" someone asked.  The audience was now more than intrigued, having actually been enjoying the play before it was interrupted.

     "Because Hallie is a two-faced cunt."

     "I'm not a cunt!  You're the cunt!"

     "You're the fucking cunt, bitch!" Maddy yelled back.

     "I am not a fucking cunt."

     "Okay, okay, you know what?" Suze said.  "You're just fucking embarrassing yourself.  Let's go home."

     "I'm not going home.  The play's not over."

     "Oh, my God.  I feel like I'm gonna throw up."

     "Mom, this isn't fair!" Cassie whined.

     "It's not her fault," Suze hid Lexi behind her.  "She's a writer.  She's a writer!"

     "This isn't fair, Mom!  How can she do this...?   Lexi, Lexi, I'm gonna fucking kill you!"

     "Okay, enough!"

     "Mom!" Lexi said, a bit more embarrassed than anything.

     "I don't know."

     "I'm panicking."

     "Go away.  Just go away.  Stop.  Stop it!" Suze finally encouraged them to get off the stage, and the carnival music kicked back up.  Eliana for one was intrigued since she hadn't been able to go to the carnival that semester what with being in Colorado and all.

     What she didn't expect was Halle to be riding a carousel pony (however the school got one) in the spotlight while exclaiming:  "Oh, my God, yes!  Oh, that's it!  Oh, my God, I just love fucking everything!"

     "No!" Cassie screamed, obviously upset by the portrayal.  "I'm going to fucking kill you!  Get the fuck off of the horse."

     "Ow!"

     "Get off!  Get off!  You fucking bitch!"

     "Oh, this bitch needs to be put down," Maddy pointed a fingernail at her as if alerting her friends before getting up from her seat and charging the stage.

     Kat was the first to object, saying, "No, no, no.  Maddy!  No!  Maddy, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!  No, no, no, Maddy!  No, no, no, no, no!  Maddy, no!"

     "Maddy, beat her ass!" BB exclaimed from the same row they'd been sitting in.

     "Fucking bitch!" Maddy took her shoes off and followed Cassie around.  "Fuck you!" followed by a loud and crisp slap. 

     Eliana rose from her seat finally, her and BB watching, except Eliana had placed her hand over her heart and made a face, obviously surprised and yet terrified by Maddy's actions.  "Oh dear fuck," she said.

     "No, no!  Stop!  Stop!  Stop this!  Stop, stop... Maddy!" Kat kept screaming, so this prompted BB and Eliana to follow their friend in trying to tame Maddy or tear the two apart since they were currently going at it on stage.  "No, no, no, no, no, no!  No, no, no!  Maddy!  No!"

     Kat, BB, and Eliana followed Maddy as she chased Cassie down the school hallways, Maddy taking hold of Cassie's head and slamming it into the wall ahead of them, causing Kat to scream and freak out more.  Eliana stopped dead in her tracks, right then making the decision that she didn't want to see what happened next.  Maddy could take care of herself anyway.

     "Beat her fuckin' ass, Maddy!  She fuckin' deserves that shit!  She fuckеd your boyfriend!" BB yelled before taking a hit of her vape pen.

     "Dude," Eliana said to her.

     "What, you wanna hit?" BB asked, extending her pen to her.

     Eliana shook her head.  "Don't tempt me."

     Meanwhile, Suze was still onstage, trying to cover up the tracks that had been very generously laid out for the audience by Cassie.  "It's all make-believe.  This is all scripted.  Can you believe this?  My baby's a genius."  The audience cheered loudly.  "Close the curtain!  Close the fucking curtain!  Now!"

     "Yeah... I, I found her.  I'm telling everyone that that was a part of the play."

     "It's the only thing I've ever done and it's a disaster," Lexi said with her back to the wall as she mopped.  Grace stood right next to Bobbi, unsure how exactly she could offer advice that would help Lexi feel better, but she had to try.

     "It could be worse."

     "How?"

     "It could be boring."

     "That's true."

     "I mean, how many shows in the history of East Highland High has started a riot?  It's not even over yet.  Art should be dangerous.  The show goes on."

     Lexi turned to Grace as if asking her what she thought.  "You've done something really fucking dope," Grace said, extending a hand to help her up.  "You ain't done."

     Meanwhile, Eliana had returned to her seat, passing Rue who was also sitting by herself.  She stopped in her tracks, her heart panging at the sight.  It begged her mind to listen.  She trailed backwards, rubbing her lips together awkwardly.  "Mind if I sit?  I'd hate to watch the rest alone."

     "Um, um yeah, yeah sure," Rue nodded.

     "Cool," Eliana smiled.  "Let me just get my purse, and probably also Maddy's so nobody steals it."

     Eliana hadn't even had her back turned for long before Rue coughed under her breath, pumping her fist as she began chanting.  "Lexi, Lexi, Lexi!" and it started kicking up as Eliana watched in awe over how much support she had.  "Lexi, Lexi, Lexi! Lexi, Lexi, Lexi! Lexi, Lexi, Lexi! Lexi, Lexi, Lexi!" Grace heard it through the walls, Lexi's hand still in her own.  "Lexi, Lexi, Lexi! Lexi, Lexi, Lexi!"

     Lexi smiled.  "Hallie... dust yourself off... and get back on that pony.  Giddy up.  Let's fuckin' do this," she said before preparing herself to go back out on the stage.  "Um, as you may have noticed, we're experiencing some technical difficulties."  The audience laughed.  "Um, but seriously, I think we're gonna need a few minutes.  Um... I just wanted to thank you all for being here.  I didn't know any of that was gonna happen, uh... A little bit ago, I was talking to a friend about this play, and I asked her... "What if I upset people?  And she said "I feel like it would be a bold move.  But not necessarily a bad one." and she has inspired me to make bold moves ever since.  You know who you are," she concluded before the lights dimmed again and she walked offstage, Grace being thankful for the darkness since her cheeks were tinted pink.

     Eliana and Rue clapped in enjoyment, neither imaging that their boyfriend and friend was currently banging on his bathroom door, begging his little brother to come out, bargaining with the cops that had swarmed his house.  Neither had the slightest idea that he was being shot in the stomach, had fallen to the ground in pain and was witnessing his family being murdered before his eyes.  

     In that moment, Eliana and Rue were just friends, long lost friends finally reunited and at peace.  They watched the rest of the play in comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company.  It was the first time they had spoken since Rue outed Cassie at her house that night.  They watched as the actors mimicked young versions of each other outside Rue's house the day of her father's funeral.  Jade came out of the house, taking a seat next to Grace.  They were all there; Rue, Lexi, Cassie, Maddy, Kat, and Eliana.  "All right, all right.  I never see the five of you little babies together, so we're gonna take a photo, okay?"

     "No, Mom, please don't take a photo," Lexi from her spot on stage said to Suze's character.  Eliana still couldn't believe it was Ethan.

     "All right, everyone come together like that.  Beautiful!"

     "Mom, no one wants to remember this moment." 

     "You little sugar sweethearts."

     "Please, stop, stop."

      Eliana laughed, remembering that day so vividly and Lexi had recreated it so perfectly that tears had begun to gather in her eyes.  She and Rue joined the audience in standing and cheering as it was the final and they wanted it to be as loud and loving as possible.  When it quieted down, the two remained seated in silence.  Eliana finally spoke up, after nearly twenty minutes of just sitting there.  "I wish the others could have seen that ending."

     Rue nodded in agreement.  "Me too."

     "Rue... I don't tell you enough how much I love you," she said, sniffling.

     "Are you crying right now?"

     Eliana shrugged.  "I love you a lot."

     Rue sucked her teeth, throwing her arm over Eliana and giving her a hug.  It had been even longer since they hugged, and especially since Rue smelled like soap and cleanliness.  "I love you too.  I... I'm sorry for telling everyone about Fez and you."

     Eliana shrugged.  "It was kind of stupid for me to believe I could keep that a secret," she said as Rue rested her chin on top of Eliana's head.  "I heard you chanting."

     "Pfft, that wasn't me," Rue said.

     Eliana pulled away, looking her in the eye.  "You don't have to pretend with me, it was so sweet of you.  Also, I'm glad you're doing a lot better.  You look fantastic.  You have to let me make your prom dress.  Also... you're girlfriend is staring at me, should I be concerned?"

     "Who, Jules?" Rue turned around, seeing that Jules was indeed staring at her from aisles across.  "She and I actually broke up."

     Eliana slowly nodded.  "Sorry to hear that."

     "It's for the best," Rue shrugged.  "Not all of us can find something as special as you did."

     Eliana grinned.  "Yeah, I'm pretty lucky huh?" Rue chuckled, but Eliana saw that Jules was currently making her way over, so she cleared her throat.  "I'm gonna go somewhere that isn't in the middle of this," she nodded to the girl, Rue composing herself as Eliana grabbed her and Maddy's purses.  "Anyways, call me sometime.  We should just hang out, without all the bullshit," Eliana rolled her eyes, meaning the drugs since they mostly used to hang out at Fez's house.  Rue nodded.  Eliana sighed, bringing her in for just one more hug, giving her a small kiss on the cheek before getting up and walking away, surely thinking she'd have to help Maddy hide a dead body that was currently in the girls' bathroom.

     Elliot approached Grace who was gathering her things into a tote bag backstage, hands in his jean pockets.  "That was great, Grace," Lexi smiled at the girl.

     "You were better," Grace tilted her head, unaware that Elliot was watching from the hallway.  "Thanks for giving me something to be a part of."

     "Aw, Grace, you're so sweet," Lexi said, bringing her in for a quick hug.  "I gotta run, but I'll call you later!" she said before hurrying off.

     Elliot leaned against the doorway of the dressing room Grace had been in, watching as she checked her makeup one last time in the mirror.  Her eyes trailed to the side, noticing that he was standing there.  "God, stalker much?"

     "Sorry... it's just... uh, never mind," he brought his hand to the back of his neck.  "I just wanted to say you were really good."

     "I was in like five scenes."

     "Can you just... take the compliment?" he raised his eyebrows, still maintaining eye contact with her in the mirror.  "I'm gonna head out, um, your mom is talking to Lexi's mom outside."

     Grace softened a bit.  "Thanks for watching her."

     "No problem, Grace," he swallowed the lump in his throat.  He had promised to leave her alone, so he wanted to take one last look at her before they were officially done.  As if reading his mind, she turned around to face him without glass in her way.  "See you around," he said, both of them knowing this was his way of saying goodbye.

     She nodded slowly, taking in the appearance of him standing there... almost vulnerable.  So close and warm she could almost feel him.  But still... a million miles away.  She assumed they'd always have a complicated relationship.  "Later, loser," she managed to say before he left, sighing heavily in the empty room once he was gone.

     Eliana found the girls sitting in silence on the bathroom sinks, her eyes trailing to each of them to take in what had happened.  Kat's hair was a little roughed up, but Cassie looked the worst, while Maddy barely had a scratch on her foot that she was currently tending to with a Coca Cola can.   "Hey guys..." she said in a sing-song tone.  "Glad to see we're all alive.  Not dead.  That's good news.  Great, actually."

     "Do you know what's funny?" Cassie ignored her, gaze trailing to the tiled floor.  "Nate broke up with me before I even went on that stage."

     "Don't worry," Maddy said, Eliana catching the way her eyebrow just barely flinched.  "This is just the beginning."

     Maddy had explained everything to Eliana as they walked back to the auditorium, ranting a bit about how stupid she'd been, how over it she was, and how she was currently craving Mexican food.  "Damn that sucks... but I'm glad you're over him," she offered a small, tight-lipped smile.  "I'm glad you're finally done.  So... let's go get tacos?"

FIN

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eliana chapter 1: "damn... that sucks" (half-heartedly)
eliana chapter 24: "damn that sucks, but I'm glad you're over him"

they grow up so fast :') thanks so much for reading the last chapter of Cherry!