Closed A Venomous Spider

[Diana Hollis]

As Edmund was Diana’s first boyfriend, she had never before had to suffer through a school break without her significant other. It had been nice not to think about classes or homework for a while, but she had missed Edmund a lot. The two had seen each other a little bit in the first few days of the year, but they hadn’t had the chance to really spend time together yet. So when she had received a note from her boyfriend to meet him in a corridor, Diana had been over the moon. She hoped that maybe they would kiss again, and talk about their holidays. Diana didn’t often really connect to another person, but she felt like she could really talk to Edmund about things. He understood her in a way she didn’t think anyone else did, not even her sisters.

She had been a little worried that after the holidays, things would change. They had exchanged letters, but had been unable to arrange a meeting together. So she had been a little worried that he would forget about her, or maybe even meet another girl. But now he wanted to meet her, so that definitely wasn’t the case. Diana had the note in her hand as she climbed the stairs to the fourth floor corridor. She wasn’t entirely sure why Edmund wanted her to meet him there, but she suspected he was planning to ask her to study with him in the library or student lounge. Which would really just be the two of them hiding behind their books and laughing silently at other people. It was perhaps a bit mean, but it was also very fun. Diana had a hopeful smile on her face as she entered the corridor. After looking around for a moment, she spotted her boyfriend and headed up to him eagerly. In an attempt to be romantic and spontaneous, and to show him how much she had missed him, she leaned in and pecked him on the mouth. He seemed surprised, but that was okay. “Hi! I got your note.” She said, sounding almost giddy, which was entirely unlike her.

 

[Theodore Westwick]

Theodore was nervous. No, he was terrified. He knew that what he was doing was risky and could go wrong, but he also knew it had to happen. Things between him and Edmund hadn’t magically repaired themselves over the break as he had hoped. There had been this… invisible tension between them, some problem that neither of them could talk about or fix easily. Theodore knew exactly what the obstacle was, even if he couldn’t tell his brother that. It was a girl, and her name was Diana Holland. Edmund had been different since he started dating her, that was when he had started to avoid Theodore more and more and tell him less. It wasn't until her that he had started to talk about how they should do things separately, how they couldn’t always be together. If it wasn’t for Diana, he wouldn’t think such things. Theodore was convinced she had been telling him those things, trying to keep Theodore away. It was deplorable, and it was time to put an end to it. He had a plan. Forging the note hadn't been hard, his handwriting had always been very similar to his brother’s. Maybe, if the girl could tell the difference, Theodore would give her some grudging respect. But he doubted she would, and seeing her appear in the corridor confirmed that for him.

He knew Edmund would end up hurt, but it had to happen. He already knew what he would say to his brother, but that wasn’t the focus right now. He could never find out what really happened, and that meant this had to go well. If Diana saw he wasn’t Edmund immediately, he would simply abandon the plan and tell her his brother had sent him with a message to say he couldn’t make their little date. But if she saw through him halfway through what he was about to do, everything would be ruined when she told Edmund what he had done. So he had to play the part well. As the girl approached, Theodore raised his chin slightly and straightened his back. He had to be his brother now, and not let her suspect a thing. He forced himself to smile a little, trying to copy way he had seen Edmund look at her, but also not too much. He wasn’t here to actually be her boyfriend, after all. He saw students passing them, which was okay. None of them were Edmund, as he was in the Ravenclaw common room. Theodore had purposely chosen a corridor a little out of the way, and taken some time beforehand to mess with his brother's insect collection, blaming their roommates. This would certainly keep Edmund occupied for a while. Theodore was going over the what he had prepared to say in his head, but was startled when the girl kissed him. He froze, suppressing the urge to splutter and wipe his mouth. Somehow, he hadn’t expected her to do that, and it made him even more annoyed with her. That had been his first kiss, technically. Though he immediately decided it didn’t count. He allowed the smile to slip from his face as he looked at her. Diana told him she had received his note, and didn’t seem to realize at all that he wasn’t Edmund. Sure, he was trying his best to copy his brother, and they did look identical. But anyone who was really worthy of his brother would know. So clearly, Diana wasn’t. “I’m glad.” He said, glad to hear his voice didn’t shake. “We need to talk.”

 

[Diana Hollis]

Diana had noticed Edmund react a little strangely to her kiss, but it was still sort of new territory for them. Maybe it had been a little much to kiss him out of nowhere, but she had hoped he would appreciate the gesture. They had been dating for a while now, weren’t they at the stage where that was normal? Didn’t he like kissing her? No, she wasn’t going to doubt this now. What she felt for Edmund was real and he felt the same about her, she knew that. The only thing that was different was that the holidays had put some distance between them, something that could easily be fixed by hanging out together. Besides, the note in her hand was proof that he wanted to see her. But her worries weren’t so easily pushed down, as Edmund had a very strange expression on his face. He had stopped smiling now, and Diana wasn’t sure what to make of this. When he said they needed to talk, she was definitely nervous. “Oh, about what?” She asked, forcing herself to keep her tone light. She let her lips curve up into a smile, hoping it might coax one out of the boy to show her things were fine.

 

[Theodore Westwick]

Theodore knew he had to have a strong resolve for this, so he focused on the girl in front of him and allowed himself to feel all the resentment and anger he had kept bottled up over the past weeks. Deep down, he knew what he was doing was wrong, but he couldn't spend another year without his brother by his side. He couldn't simply watch him slip away more and more, and only because some pretty girl batted her lashes at him. He clenched his hands into fists, and forced himself to speak, refusing to answer the girl's smile in the slightest. "What we had was fun, for a while. But it should end here." He told her, refusing to look away. "I'm breaking up with you. It's over." He wasn't sure if this was entirely convincing, as he had never had to break up with anyone before. But at least he was sure his words were clear, and she wouldn't be able to misinterpret them. He had no idea how she would react, but all he could hope for was that she wouldn't realize who he really was. Anything else he could deal with.

 

[Diana Hollis]

Diana felt herself grow more and more nervous as she looked at Edmund's face. Something about it was making warning bells go off in her mind, but she didn't want to listen to them. The look in his eyes was so completely different from how he had looked at her in the past, that she knew deep down that something wasn't right. That was quickly confirmed by Edmund's words. They felt like a punch to the gut, and Diana could only stare at him with wide eyes for a moment. Why? Why would he suddenly want to break up? His letters hadn't indicated anything like that, and she had been so excited to see him again. Slowly, she shook her head, a small, nervous laugh escaping her. "What? What are you saying?" She asked, her voice weak. She swallowed, shaking her head again. "Edmund, we're doing so well, this isn't..." She trailed off, shaking her head again. Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. "Did someone say something about me?" She asked, more fiercely now. That had to be it. Someone who hated her, or someone who was jealous of her and her boyfriend had made this happen somehow. They had told Edmund some lie about her that made him think he had to break up with her. But even though this was something to cling to, she couldn't quite make herself believe it. Why would Edmund believe someone he barely knew when they talked badly about her? That didn't sound like him. But none of this was like him, and it was still happening.

 

[Theodore Westwick]

The girl was clearly shocked by his words, and nothing in her expression was accusatory. She must really believe he was Edmund, which gave Theodore the confidence to keep going. But the fact that she seemed to be bargaining for the relationship now made him frustrated, especially when she assumed someone else was involved in meddling in it. It was a little too close for comfort, and Theodore knew he had to end this more quickly. People were glancing their way, which he didn't mind too much but he also didn't want word to get to Edmund before he could spin the story to make it sound like Diana had assumed him to be his brother and dumped him. Hopefully, the rumors wouldn't be too detailed about this encounter, though he also knew Edmund hardly listened to gossip. He shook his head, narrowing his eyes at her. He still allowed his frustration and anger to fuel his actions, which is what caused him to add some cruelty to his words. If she wasn't going to listen to clear language, he would just make her want to leave so he could start dealing with his brother. "No one else had to tell me anything about you, I know everything I need to know already." He said, shaking his head. "You're pretty, and it was fun to go to dances with you and kiss, but I'm bored." He shrugged, almost apologetic. "I just wanted a bit of a break from my brother, honestly. He's a little too much sometimes. You were a nice distraction, but it's gone on long enough." The words weren't easy for Theodore to say, as this was what he was afraid his brother was truly thinking about him. But if it was, he may have said so to Diana, so he had to repeat it to be consistent. It would also make it harder for her to guess who he really was, because why would he talk badly about himself? "Please don't make a scene." He added, raising one eyebrow slightly.

 

[Diana Hollis]

Diana had never thought of how heartbreak would feel. If she had thought about a relationship ending in abstract terms, she had always imagined herself being the one to end it. But she hadn't even thought about things with Edmund ending, and especially not like this. It was so... cold, so sudden. Unbidden, tears came to her eyes. She hated it, but she couldn't help it. "Please." She heard herself say, ,her voice wavering and on the edge of tears. It was like she had lost control of herself for a moment, losing any composure and dignity in the face of this cruelness from the boy she was in love with. "I don't know what I did wrong, but please let me fix it." Even as she said these words, she hated them. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. This wasn't her. But she felt a desperate need to stop this from happening. And if that meant she had to plead for it, even in a crowded corridor, it seemed like she would do so. Edmund had made her feel special and wanted, he had made her feel like she wasn't just in the middle of a group of shining sisters. But now he was making her feel very small, and she hadn't realized he had that power over her until this moment. "Edmund, don't do this to me." She added in a small voice.

 

[Theodore Westwick]

Theodore wished this would end already. The girl was annoyingly persistent, and something about that made him feel guilty. He had thought she wasn't worthy for Edmund, even told himself she didn't really like him. He realized now that she did, but he couldn't go back. He didn't want to go back. If he just managed to pull this off, he could reunite with Edmund and be the same as they used to be. Still, it was hard to bear her sad pleading. More and more students seemed to be looking at them, probably because the girl was clearly on the verge of tears. Theodore clenched his jaw, shaking his head. "It's done, Diana. Accept it." He said, taking care even now to pronounce her name the way Edmund did. It was really astonishing to him that she hadn't realized he wasn't his brother, and that alone was what kept him going. If she couldn't see the difference between the two of them, she wasn't a good girlfriend for Edmund. "I thought you weren't the type of girl to start crying. But I guess you are." He told her, making things up just to make her go away. Theodore hated crying people, and he didn't know what to do if she stuck around and started to sob. He needed her to leave so he could handle the other end of this. He still had to think of what exactly to tell his brother, and he knew that tricking him would be a lot more difficult than tricking this girl. He had never lied to Edmund before, but it was needed. "Look, you should leave. It's embarrassing, and you might want to run along before people start talking." He shrugged, shaking his head. "I'll leave first, if that helps." He added, turning and starting to walk away from her. He pushed past a few people who were staring at him, but hoped he could get out of this without anyone jumping in to defend her honor.

 

[Diana Hollis]

Diana had been sure that her pleading would change something in Edmund's expression, that he would look at her less coldly. But it hadn't. If anything, he only looked more disgusted. The tears that had been gathering in her eyes started to spill over as he spoke, making his statement all the more cruel. She herself had thought she wasn't the type to start crying, but it seemed like she was. When he told her this was embarrassing, she really couldn't stop herself anymore. A small sob escaped her, and one hand flew to her mouth to stifle it. But it was no use. Edmund was turning and walking away from her after crushing her heart in pieces. Diana didn't care that the corridor wasn't empty, that people could see her. She started to cry in earnest, covering her face. She had to get out of here, but how? All she knew is that she didn't want to go in the same direction as Edmund, but she couldn't stay here either. She turned, pushing her way past people blindly as she continued to sob. She hardly saw where she was going, but it didn't matter. Right now, nothing did.