Realistic or Modern Mad House.

[Pine]

Nick raised his own eyebrows at the other boy. Wow, I think that's the most expressive he's ever been. Maybe he's furious. He snickered lightly. That's just sad. His false smile dissolved rather quickly, however, giving way to the glower he truly wanted to make. Who is he? I'm standing right here, you could just ask me, or at least say something instead of waiting to gossip about me behind my back like a bunch of teenage girls. What, do you think I can't hear you? I'm staring right at you, Patchy. Ugh.


The boy shut his eyes then, lifting his head from the door just enough to massage his temples. They were out of earshot now, and either way, all that he had managed to accomplish with his study was make himself angry. Stress. Too much stress. I really need to calm down. School was fine today, except for being late. When was the last time I spent the majority of my day actually happy? Nick shook his head, not wanting to know the answer. Rather, he pushed himself up from leaning against the door and managed to resist the urge to slam the door. The mechanism quietly clicked into place as he released the doorknob from it's twisted position before he ventured back into the kitchen.


His backpack was sitting curled in the corner, folding from the lack of content inside to hold it up straight. Nick reached down to grab it, but in that moment, the breeze from the air condition finally hit him, and he had to pause for a moment to relish it. Though it felt great on his face, the air cut right through his shirt, and with that already having been chilled, it sent a shiver coursing down his spine. Without any more delay, he ran back up the stairs to throw his backpack in his room then go to shower.

 

[spectro]

Fliss sat on her bed, staring at the mess on her floor. She let out an irritated groan and then stretched, seeing as she had been sat on her bed all day. She picked up the pieces of broken plate and set them apart from the cake. She got up and decided to go downstairs to get a bin bag. She walked out of her room and saw Nick go into his. She shook her head a little, knowing she shouldn't have just walked away from him. Still, she made her way downstairs to get a bag.


When she had put the cake and the plate pieces in the bag, Fliss began to reflect on Jamie. Nick was obviously right, he was a crazy bastard. Smashing the plate on the floor? She started to feel a little angry and walked over to Jamie's room. She tied the bag on the door and hopefully he would be a nice guy and just politely put it in the bin, of course she knew that probably wasn't going to be the case. She sighed and made her way back to her room when-"Felicity?" A voice came from the bottom of the stairs. "Yes?" She answered, a little confused. "My office, now." The voice obviously belonged to the headmistress. Fliss felt her cheeks burn up as she thought of all the times she had ever done anything wrong, maybe she was going to be shouted at? Fliss hated being yelled at, it made her freeze up. It made her feel wrong, and stupid and belittled.


"Ah, Felicity," The tall girl walked into the office and closed the door as if she had already been trained to do so,"I am under the impression that it is your birthday on Wednesday?" She took off her glasses and smiled.





"It is." Fliss cringed, her hated birthdays.





"Good. So I am not mistaken. I have take the liberty of booking you and your house mates a table at San Leo. I hope you like Italian." She grinned and leant forward.





"Actually, I-"





"Great. I'm sure you'll inform your peers." She went back to looking at her papers. #





Fliss expelled air and then walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. She had been taught to do so in her Fathers office; he was very strict with rules. She went back to her room to think it over.


 
Jamie sat on his bed, on his laptop. He had been writing own things he had found out about the others for the past half hour and he has been researching Nick for the past 5. It didn't take long to find a post on a blog by someone named Jen365. Jamie clicked on it and saw it was from over a year ago, but nonetheless, it was evidence that Nick was crazy. The post had only about 30 views, so he knew only a minimal amount of people knew about this. The post was about 'Jennifers' or 'Jennys' typical day, and just as Jamie was about to exit the page as he was getting bored of hearing about her morning makeup routine, he skipped to the bottom where the last line read: "P.S: Nick Johnson is a pig to women, yes I am naming and shaming," At this point, Jamie just thought she might be an ex girlfriend but then-"He is a rapist, and I warn anyone who comes in contact with him to stay away. I want no one else to go through what I did." A smile curled on Jamie's face. This was perfect. He could do anything he wanted. He closed his laptop and almost began to laugh as he walked out of his room, but the rattling of broken pottery came from the back of his door. He didn't care right now and oh-Nick was just exiting the bathroom, how perfect. "Ah, Nicholas, I have a bone to pick with you, a rather big one." He leant on his door, watching his face, watching his features, waiting for them to drop in anger or fear, either emotion was hilarious. "Who is Jen365? I'm guessing she's a Jennifer or a Jenny?" He smiled.

 

[Pine]

Nick exited the bathroom, his skin pleasantly warm from the steam that had curled over him for the past few moment. In contrast to the sauna-like feeling that the bathroom had provided just moments ago, the hallway felt frigid to him, and the boy instantly held the somewhat damp towel to his chest in an effort to preserve his heat. He ruffled his hair, which was still somewhat wet and had just to be styled, making it spike all over. Nick had just stuck a finger in his ear to brush out some excess water when he noticed Jamie standing outside of his door at the end of the hall. He's looking right at me. Why does he look so happy? he wondered vaguely, eying the other boy warily.


The boy didn't break his stride even as Jamie spot, genuinely perplexed about what any of this had to do with him. "What is this, Trivial Pursuit, YouTuber's Edition?" He wiped his finger on the towel, then began to run his finger through the crevices of his other ear. "I don't know what you're talking about." Midway through saying that, however, the corner of his lip twitched, a pang of realization hitting him. No, no. That can't be it. There's no way he knows about that. Nick attempted to keep a calm facade, but even as his pace picked up a little, his room suddenly seemed impossibly far away. He attempted to hide his unease with a smile. "Honestly, Asshole, you should get out more. That's not healthy for you."

 

[spectro]

Jamie was filled with happiness at the sight of Nick twitch. You know exactly what I'm talking about. "Oh, just a girl that accused you of rape." He squinted his eyes slightly. "Nick, I don't know if this is true, but I'm guessing by your crazed attitude, it probably is." Jamie pulled forward off of the door. "All I can say is, I'm the only one who knows about this, and I want to, how do you say-get in with Fliss. So how about you tell her how wonderful I am and get her to speak to me again, because you and me both know she'll go off your every whim, or I'll tell her about this littlerape case." She folded his arms, as he usually did when he meant business and waited for the decision to settle on Nick.

 

[Pine]

Nick's smile dropped instantaneously, grimacing at the other boy. He forced himself to keep moving forward down the hallway with even steps. Now he knew there was no way he could play this off; he knew exactly what the other boy had seen. It was the same post that Dominik had showed him that Monday. But how the hell did he find it? He remained silent throughout the boy's proposal, not sure if his intentions were general humiliation or blackmail, up until the boy brought up Felicity. Get a wingman like everyone else. You don't even care if it's true, damn you.


Though the boy was aware there was no way he could convince Jamie it had nothing to do with him, he needed just that much time to kill, so he might as well play dumb for a little while longer. "I would never do that, dude. That could be anyone." Nick adjusted the towel in his arm, folding both arms to hold it up to his chest, vaguely aware that he was bringing it needlessly to his room. "Nick's a pretty common name. I seriously have no idea what you're talking about."


He arrived just outside his door and looked at the room longingly. Just beyond that door, he could shut the whole world out and ignore all of this. Hell, maybe he could even pull it off, seem like he truly had no involvement with the situation. Nick exhaled a deep, wistful sigh. Except that will never happen. Might as well take care of this now before it gets out of hand.


He looked back at Jamie finally, no longer bothering to conceal the vexation and pure loathing in his expression. In one swift movement, Nick dropped the towel to the floor and grabbed the doorknob to Jamie's room. He moved to close the distance between them and push Jamie up against the door, holding his arm in such a manner the he would press roughly into his collarbone. "I have a counter proposal," he snarled. "Tell anyone about this and I'll make your life a living hell starting right now."

 

[spectro]

Jamie laughed more, "And how do you think you'll ruin my life, hm? You know nothing about me. So, Nicholas," He pushed away Nicks hand and poked him in the chest. "You'll do as I say, because that story is about you, Nicholas Johnson, and even if it isn't, I'll make it about you." He pushed forward and pushed Nick onto the other wall, "Don't think you have the hand over me, kid, because you don't." He straightened out Nick's shirt,"So what'll it be?" He raised an eyebrow.

 

[Pine]

Nick allowed himself to be pushed for the moment, although admittedly judging from that, if they were to get into a fight, it wouldn't be purely one-sided. If that's the case, this is like some weird, half-assed foreplay. He barked a callous laugh, feigning amusement at the boy's efforts. How will I make your life miserable? Well, that would ruin the surprise. It irked him, truly, but even if he were to comply to his demands, he knew it wouldn't end there. And do you think I'm actually intimidated by you, halfwit? "Sorry chump, it'd take an awful lot to be able to play you up anyway and... well... I'm just not that good." Still smiling, he tapped the other boy on the nose and shook his head. "I don't know how you found out about that, but you still don't know me at all. I don't care what she thinks about me; I just hate you."


Nick pushed him away then, just to give himself some space. "I'm sure certain concepts come difficult for you to grasp, so I'll just explain this to you. That petty rumor has been held over my head before, I can deal with it again." No, I can't, but I still won't lie to her. You're missing the real target here, buddy. Either way, I'm not going to just let you walk away from this, so don't even try. The boy reached up to flick Jamie hard in the Adam's apple, his smile spreading.

 

[spectro]

"Really, you're resorting to flicking me?" Jamie rubbed his neck, a little agitated. "So, do I have to go and tell Felicity about your little, experience?" He grinned and looked down his nose at Nick. How long is he going to drag this out?

 

[Pine]

Like I'm just going to let you do that. Why are you looking at me like that? I'm taller than you, squirt. Obviously this guy wasn't about to give up, which was something he should have expected. I really want to wipe that smug grin off his face, he reflected with a smug look of his own. "That depends. Do you want me to punch you now or later?" Nick plucked at the boy's neck, hoping to provoke him a final time.

 

[spectro]

"Oh, later. I like a surprise. If you're quite finished at threatening me with your pathetic violence, I'll just go and talk to Felicity." He smiled and nodded at Nick, walking slowly to Fliss' room. If this is what you want Nicky, you'll get it.

 

[Pine]

Pathetic violence? What does that even mean? Don't you know I'm going to absolutely throttle you? However, something grounded Nick in place, leaving him to drill a glare into the back of the boy's head. He was certainly angry enough by this encounter, angry that the other boy had somehow dug into his past life just to blackmail him for some girl and how he had such an absolutely disregard for others. It was enough to keep his expressions flipping from cheerful taunts and smiling faces then back to despising him and letting it show.


The heat of his fury rose to his face, but the tiny shred of logic he had left in him kept him from toppling him over then and beating the boy senseless, and it took him a few moments to piece it all together. That's what you want me to do. If you don't fight me back, then you're the victim and I'm not only a rapist to these people, but also a bully. There goes any credibility on my part. So much for the truth prevailing. Nick's lips curled, baring his teeth just a little. Think. If not that, then what do I do then? Pit my word against his, and technically Jennifer's, too? I don't know. I just need time to think, but he's walking away...


It dawned on him suddenly, wiping all aggression from his countenance. Oh, that's a much better plan. Later it is, then. Sorry not sorry. "W-wait." Don't think I'm a coward. I'm still gonna' pound you. No, wait, do think I'm a coward. That works in my favor. You still don't know me, after all, do you? Nick dropped his gaze and knelt to the ground. You caught my bluff. Carefully selecting his next words, he worked to keep an impassive look to his face as he slowly gathered the towel back into his arms. Now, how would I look right now? I wouldn't know, I never admit defeat. I hate losing. Bitter resignation, then?


Placing his fingers against the carpeted floor, he pressing down on them until the joints turned white as he pushed himself to his feet. As it turns out, any idiot can lie. I'll just have to be better than you which, considering I am, I can definitely do. "I'll talk to her." Avoid eye contact. Very good. Since he can't see the bigger picture here, then, focus and be just as narrow-minded. Nick finally looked up to meet the other boy's eyes, openly displaying his resentment while keeping his temper in check. "But if this somehow works out, you better treat her right." There's two ways this can go, and either way, I just won.

 

[spectro]

"Great." Jamie turned and smiled, "I knew you would choose the right thing, now hurry up, I tend to start our relationship tonight." He dropped one corner of his mouth and his smile turned into a half grin. He made a hurrying action with his hands towards Felicity's room.

 

[Pine]

Ah, easy route it is, then. It spite of the almost euphoric sense he got from that, when the other boy made the motion towards her door in such a chipper manner, it took all of his self control to only continue down the hallway. It's better than me having to ask which room is her's, he had to tell himself. But tonight? You really shouldn't trust me. Still playing the submission game, he glared at Jamie upon passing him, shoving the towel into his chest for the other boy to take to the bathroom for him and push him a little, but didn't wait to see if he actually took them or not. I guess this is going to be more entertaining than having to skim that chapter of physics to finish the homework... ugh... don't even want to think about that now. Nick arrived before the shut door to her room and rapped his knuckles against it. "Felicity, it's me. Can I come in?"

 

[spectro]

Jamie laughed as the towel slammed into his chest. "I'll be in my room if you need me." He threw the towel on the floor and walked to his room.





Nick? Why is he here? "Come in." Fliss had just finished scrubbing her floor and she had only just had five minutes to sat down. Couldn't anyone give her any peace?

 

[ChronosDesine]

The ride to Banaltra Headquarters was long and uneventful. Bill and Aaron just talked about stupid nicknames and Natasha looked out of the window the whole time. When they finally arrived Natasha and Aaron stepped into the building. Bill got stopped by the security-guards.


''Are you serious, Banaltra?'' Bill threw his arms in the air. ''Come on. I'm with him'' Bill looked at one one of the guards while pointing at Aaron.


''Sorry Cipher. Only employees are welcome here'' Natasha smirked at him and Aaron just shrugged. ''Sorry Bill. But I really have to work right now'' He smiled sympathetically at him.


''Of course princess. Of course'' Bill turned around. ''Have fun at work, Stripes'' Said Bill before he stepped into the car.


Aaron wanted to say something along the lines of, ''Are you serious''. But he decided not to when he heard him say Stripes. Hopefully he stops calling me princess. Or any nickname. Wow. I just realized that only Natasha sometimes calls me Aaron.





One hour later.


''Aaron, you're done. You can go home now'' Said some guy in a suit. Aaron nodded at him and ran downstairs. He didn't take the stairs. Which was kinda stupid. Because when he got downstairs he was tired as hell.


''Note to self. Take the elevator''


Aaron walked outside and smiled when he saw Bill waiting for him. Natasha had an important meeting so she called Bill to bring him home. Normally she would've asked Charles but he had to do something now. And as much as she hated it. She didn't know someone else who could bring him home right now.


''Hey Stripes!'' Bill waved at him. ''How was work?'' Asked he when Aaron stepped into the car.


''It was'' Aaron took a second to think. ''Okay'' It was terrible. He had to listen to snobs and bring them coffee. And when the coffee was bad he had to get it again. And when he thought that he didn't do something right he had to do it again. The whole thing. He really hated files right now. On the plus side, he's better at putting thins on alphabetical order.


Bill chuckled and sighed. ''First job?''


''First job'' Sighed Aaron.


''The only good thing is that I already got my paycheck!'' Aaron grabbed an envelop out of his bag and showed it Bill. He smiled brightly at Bill.


''Wanne put that on your bank account?''


''Sure why not''


It took them an hour to ride to the bank, put the money on Aaron's bank account and to drive back to The New Life Centre.


''Wait!'' Said Aaron when they arrived. ''Can you drive me to a store... I want to buy a phone'' Said Aaron with a smile. He didn't want to borrow others people phones if he had to call someone.


''Stripes. Do I look like your chauffeur?'' Asked Bill with a raised eyebrow.


''Do I really have to answer that?'' Asked Aaron with a smile. ''But.. can you please bring me?''


''Of course. How can I say no to that'' Bill drove to the nearest phone store.


It took them awhile but Aaron finally picked a phone. A half hour later Aaron was back at The New Life Centre.


''Thanks for bringing me home'' Said Aaron when he stepped out of the car.


''It's a pleasure to have been of some assistance'' Said Bill with a smile. Aaron raised his eyebrow and chuckled.


''See you later'' Aaron closed the door and walked to the front door. When he got inside he quickly went to his room. He spent at least five minutes reading the stupid manual and putting Natasha's number into his phone.

Spoiler

I have no idea. But I just wanted to use this picture xD

 

[Pine]

Nick turned his head a little at the suppressed sound of the towel dropping to the ground. With Jamie's back turned to him, the sullen look on his face lifted into a smirk. I can't wait to see the look on his face. Idiot. Allowing his smugness to revert to a more pleasant grin, his twisted the doorknob and pushed his way in with a quiet, "Thanks." Just as a precaution, because he didn't want Jamie to happen to overhear him and intervene, he pinched the groove of the doorknob between two fingers and locked the door. If she asks, it's purely habitual, unless I want to tell her the truth about this all... but I would much rather it just never be brought up.


Suddenly aware that he was studying her expression, he suspected he had gotten into one of those analytical moods on and off throughout the day. Nick couldn't tell precisely what was going through her head but, well, she had allowed him in. "Sorry, in case you were busy. I won't take up too much of your time. I just want to talk to you about Jamie real quick." Again. He almost rolled his eyes, but instead, he moved to find an acceptable place to seat himself, more or less. Nick ended up selecting to lean against the desk, sitting precariously on the edge with his legs crossed over one another, his arms gripping the edge at his sides.


The boy lifted a hand, recalling that his hair was still spiked, and began to smooth it down toward the back. Oh, where to begin... so many possibilities. "Well, I just wanted to say... well, he's not really all that bad of a guy." Comically, he stopped petting down the clumps of hair, tilting his head as thought to consider something. "I mean, spanking you as he had is, by legal definition, sexual harassment, but that's beside the point." Internally, he was cracking up, but at the moment, he simply smiled sarcastically at her and continued to groom himself. "He has a pretty bright future ahead of him. He does have a habit of lying, but with all the practice he's getting, he'll be great at it and... well... great liars make great politicians... or is the other way around?" Nick tapped his chin thoughtfully, as satisfied with his hair as he would be without a mirror in front of him. "Either way, that's a pretty powerful position. Decent income. Also arguably the spirit of the hard working American."


Nick straightened himself just enough to not fall when he shifted his hand position. He pressed the back of his fingers firmly against the wooden desk, cracking them loudly. His frame shivered slightly in mirth, but he was managing to hold back his laughter. "He's also a pretty decent looking guy. I mean, obviously he hasn't worked out a day in his life, not really, but I'm sure being macho and manly comes pretty naturally to him." Nick paused briefly. "I mean, there are some better looking guys than him." Like me. He paused again, once again as thought to contemplate what he had just said. "A lot of better looking guys, but leave him by himself long enough, I'm almost sure you can ignore that fact. Hm..." He looked down, thinking how much more he needed to elaborate. This is just too much fun. "Some might call it a waste to have such a beautiful girl with such a bland guy, but I'm sure marriages work out like that sometimes. I mean, sugar daddies are a thing. After all, he makes up for it with personality. All those great qualities..." Nick rubbed the back of his neck. "Er... what were those again?" He smiled back up at her then. Come on, laugh. Just a little bit.

 

[spectro]

Fliss watched Nick enter the room and then twist the lock shut. She thought it was weird, but didn't have time to question it; he was already starting a speech. Fliss didn't really hear most of the words. She was looking at him, his eyes, the crystal colour of them. They were beau- Jamie? Why was he talking about Jamie and-Not that bad of a guy? Fliss watched him, obviously he had been put up to it. When he had finished, she burst out laughing and laughed in the silence of the room. "Are you kidding?" She finally pulled herself together. She calmed down, "For a starts, politicians are almost always awful people. And second," She shook her head, confused, "Only this morning, you were telling me how much of an idiot he was. What changed? Plus, he just stained my floor with a chocolate cake. I'm not forgiving him anytime soon." She sat up. "So who put you up to this?"

 

[Pine]

When she finally laughed, he burst out into laughter right alongside her, curling forward somewhat as he did so. Nick felt pleased that she caught on to his rather satirical speech... until she came up with a rather serious response, making him doubt she actually understood. She had seemed intensely focused on him the entire time, he had noticed, but was that just because she was completely baffled by what he was saying. His laughter having died down enough, he tilted his head just barely to give her a perplexed look, though he was still grinning. "That's the point. Felicity, I was kidding. You aren't very experienced with sarcasm, are you?"


Nick grabbed a corner of the desk, twisting until a series of pops raced up his spine, leaving him to slouch forward with a contented sigh. But chocolate cake? Is that what lover boy was busying himself with this morning? Oh... I still need to return that spoon to him. The boy shook his head at her last question. "I'll give you five guesses, but if you don't get it right the first time, you're stupid."

 

[spectro]

Of course she knew, and she definitely wasn't stupid. "What is his deal?" She ran a hand through her hair, confused as to why Jamie would have upset her on purpose and then just want Nick to speak to her. "I am so done with him." She shook her head. "I can't actually believe I was so close to forgiving him." She rested her elbow on her knee and her cheek on her hand. She stared at the opposite wall, knowing that the next thing she would say would be hard, "I'm sorry." She gulped. "For real, like for real for real." She turned to him, "Maybe we could be friends, one day?" She looked at her hands.

 

[Pine]

Nick's grin broadened, combing his fingers through his hair so as to flip the front. Ah, there we go. Draw the conclusion yourself, don't just go with some pack mentality with me as some sort of ring leader. "I would say it's some sort of attempted 'slam bam thank you ma'am' kinda' deal, except he really has no idea what he's doing." Terrible judge of character, honestly. By that time, his smile had dissolved, and he was more clearly exhibiting his bemusement. "I don't know what you're apologizing for." Nick gave a long exhale through his nostrils, ceasing his fidgeting and gripping the edge of the desk once more. "In case you didn't understand what I was trying to say this morning, which I don't think you did, I wasn't saying I don't want to be friends or anything, but like... arranging an agreement and having to say that we are is kinda' weird." He breathed a light chuckle. "You get what I mean now?"

 

[spectro]

"Yeah. I see, I just thought that meant that you didn't want to be friends." She laughed. "Perhaps I'm not as intelligent as I think I am." She shrugged. "So, Nick, my friend," She stood up,"You are cordially invited to my birthday party." She rolled her eyes,"The Headmistress apparently found out about my birthday and arranged a meal at this random Italian place. It's just a good thing I like pizza." She smiled.

 

[Pine]

Ah, miscommunication. I'm kinda' bad about that, aren't I? "Cordially?" he repeated, puffing out his bottom lip and nodding to feign being impressed. "When's your birthday?" Nick knit his eyebrows together, however, after gathering her lack of enthusiasm about it. "What? Birthdays are fun. Food is food is food. Especially pizza... and why does everyone keep saying 'the headmistress'? Doesn't she have a name?"

 

[spectro]

Fliss knitted her hands together. "I don't know why, I've jut always hated birthdays, I guess it was because my parents never officially celebrated them." Her voice cracked as she said parents, the simple word was enough to nearly set her off. "And, I don't know, maybe. Perhaps she just prefers to be called that. Maybe you could ask her?" she sat back down,"I know I wouldn't, she scares the hell outta' me."

 

[Pine]

Nick's expression of bafflement deepened. Who didn't celebrate birthdays? He, personally, would always go out with his friends, but in spite of his continuous avoidance, his parents still made an effort to give him something. He would have inquired, but by some miracle, he had caught the hitch in her voice, and with the situation as strange as it was, he felt it was safe to say that it was a sore subject for her, the likes of which he was hardly prepared to touch on. Instead, he decided it was best to drop the subject. She still didn't answer when it was, though. Whatever.


The boy stifled a yawn before relaxing his expression into a tiny grin. "I don't care enough to ask. I haven't seen this chick, but how scary can she be?" Nick, supposedly unable to satisfy himself from the last yawn, breathed in ever deeper, before exhaling loudly with finality. Why, look at this. We're having a pleasant conversation. Not anything super interesting, but definitely not what Jamie wanted. Now for the anti-climatic finale.


The boy pushed himself up so as to actually sit on the edge of the desk. He looked down at his hands, which seemed to have folded in his lap of their own accord. He was searching for the precise words he wanted to use for this. Society would be more difficult to convince, but Jamie didn't seem to have the wits to think on such a large scale, so he could, more or less, put an end to all of this now. Nick was evidently uncomfortable, shifting on the desk a little as his feet hovered just above the floor. After he felt satisfied with what he were to say, he looked back up at Felicity. "Do you trust me?"

 

[spectro]

Fliss saw Nick fidget uncomfortably. She was going to tell him that the Headmistress was indeed very scary, but his sudden change in posture made her keep quiet. He looked up at her with his crystal eyes and spoke, "Do you trust me?" Felicity gulped. She didn't know if she trusted him. Maybe she would if he proved himself, but so far, Nick didn't seem like the person to give away secrets. But this didn't seem like he would be telling a secret. It seemed like he needed to do something more than a secret but without further ado, Fliss opened her mouth. "Yes." She said, with a little twinge of suspiciousness in her voice, but on the whole, she did trust him, and if he proved her wrong, then she would see this as some kind of trust exercise.