“It sure was nice of you to send Angela to hang out with me while you were in class,” Charise remarked, as she, Dunstan, and Angela sat down to eat.

“Well, I thought that you might be lonely. Besides, Angela wanted to see the campus,” Dunstan replied.

“Yes. I have been considering furthering my studies here,” Angela agreed.

“That’s wonderful! What do you think you’ll major in?” Charise exclaimed.

Angela thought for a moment. “I think perhaps… gosh, I’m not really sure. I suppose literature or art,” she said slowly.

“Good choices. I’m a psych major myself, and Dunstan’s a double major-- art and music.”

“Oh, goodness, when I come here, I’ll have so much trouble with my classes. Perhaps you two will be able to help me?”

“Of course. We’re all friends here,” Charise replied. To Dunstan, she added, “It’s a shame Valo couldn’t join us.”

“Well,” Dunstan lied, “she said she had plans to spend time with her boyfriend.”

“That’s so sweet. I didn’t even know she was seeing anyone,” Charise remarked.

“Well, he’s a lucky guy, whoever he is, although why she wouldn’t tell you, much less me, is impossible to comprehend,” Dunstan remarked.


Charise paused for a moment, a thought forming in her head. “Do you think… maybe she’s keeping quiet because… this is going to sound silly, but… is it possible that she’s dating S?”

“Well, he has been out and about at odd times,” Dunstan remarked.

“Yes, and I have seen him spending a lot of time with a girl with long hair and glasses,” Angela added. “Although I didn’t really get that good of a look at her.”

“What would he see in her?” Charise asked.

Dunstan smirked a little. “Well, darling, not to sound crass, but she is… rather ‘well-traveled,’ to put it politely.”

“She’s easy?”

“Yes.”

Charise raised an eyebrow. “She doesn’t seem like the type. Then again, she does spend a lot of time around guys,” she mused.

Dunstan shrugged. “Well, whatever the reason, it’s nice to see people finding partners. I hope that one day, you’ll find someone to love also, Angela.”

Angela smiled a bit ominously. “Yes, Dunstan.”



“Come here, Angela,” Dunstan said, stretching out on the sofa. Angela turned from the flowers that she was arranging in a vase, smiled, and walked over.

“Sit down.” Dunstan made a place for her, and Angela obediently perched beside him.

“What is it?” Angela asked.

“Things are not going quite as planned.”

“So the other person who is a threat to you… it’s…?”

“Yes. That girl.”

“The one with the long hair and glasses.”

“Yes.”

“But, Dunstan, why is she a threat?”


Dunstan sighed and stared up at the ceiling. “Because not only does she know exactly what I am like, what my tastes are when it comes to women… but she also has a strong will. She knows what I am like, but rather than passively accepting it, as most women have, she hates me for it. She will reveal it to people with power, if she sees the need to. She seeks to change the world, rather than accept it.”

“Is that why you want me to watch Ophelia?” Angela asked.

“Yes, among other reasons.”

“What other reasons?”

Dunstan smiled and stroked Angela’s hair. “All in good time. One day, I’ll tell you. Let’s just say she knows me even better than Miss DeSidiro.”

Angela sighed and leaned her head on Dunstan’s shoulder. “You’re a cruel man.”

“Not cruel. Powerful. It’s time to implement the next part of my plan. Trust me, little one, if this goes well, then Jessica DeSidiro will be eating out of the palm of my hand.”



Valo stretched out on her bed, watching TV, with books scattered around her. “What a nutty day,” she muttered to herself. “Dunstan shows up out of nowhere, after about two years, and turns out, Charise is dating him. I really should tell her what a bad guy he is, but… would she listen?”

She reached over to her desk to pick up her cell phone, but before she could begin to dial any numbers, the phone began ringing. Valo stared at the phone as though it were possessed. “What now?” she groaned, recognizing the number. With a sigh, she answered the call. “Dunstan, what the hell do you want now?” she asked.

“Come downstairs.”

“Why?”

“I have a gift for you.”

“I don’t want anything from you,” Valo replied.

“I’m not going to leave until you come get it,” Dunstan argued.

“Then you can stay there and rot, for all I care.”

“You’re a cruel, heartless woman. I just want to give a nice present to an old friend, and you speak to me like I’m a criminal.”

“You are a criminal, Dunstan.”

“Just come downstairs for a minute. I’ll give you the present, and then I’ll stay out of your life, unless our paths accidentally cross, in which case, I’ll stay well away from you.”

Valo thought for a moment and then replied, “Promise?”

“Of course.”

“I’ll be there in a little while.”

“Good,” Dunstan replied. “I’ll see you soon.” He ended the call and pocketed the phone.


A few minutes later, Valo shuffled into the dorm lobby. Dunstan walked over to her, saying, “And here’s the lovely Miss DeSidiro.”

“Can it, Dunstan,” Valo replied. “Just give me the gift and get out of my life.”

“Pushy, eh?” Dunstan remarked. “But fine. A deal is a deal.” He pulled a small box out of his pocket and handed it to Valo.

Valo eyed the box and gave Dunstan a suspicious look. “If there’s a ring of any kind in here,” she said, “the ring and the box are going where the sun doesn’t shine.”

“Well, luckily for us both, it’s not a ring. Open it up.”

Valo sighed and opened the box. Inside, there was a lovely necklace and earring set that looked very costly. She shook her head. “You’re trying to buy my silence.”

“Beg pardon?”


“You don’t want me to tell Charise what kind of man you are, so you’re bribing me.”

Dunstan sighed. “Ah… you caught me.”

“I’m going to tell her, you know.”

“Good luck getting her alone.”

Valo glared at Dunstan. “You really are a manipulative jerk,” she remarked.

Dunstan shrugged. “Whatever. Have fun with your boyfriend… whoever he is. I don’t think he even exists.”

“He does.”

“Then who is he?”

“You don’t know him.”

“Try me.”

Valo whispered the name. Dunstan smirked slightly. “What a loser. But whatever,” he remarked. “I’ll keep my side of the bargain. I’m leaving now.”

“Good,” Valo said sternly. She stuffed the box back into his pocket. “And take this with you.”

“Certainly. I’m sure Charise will like it.”

Valo did not respond; instead, she turned and walked away. Dunstan chuckled to himself and walked out of the dorm. Angela sat on a bench nearby, waiting. As he approached, she rose.


“How did it go?” she asked. “Did you get all of the information you wanted?”

Dunstan nodded and grinned. “She’s not dating S, but she is dating someone with dark hair and blue eyes. I think with a few well-shot photos, we can have Charise angry enough at Miss DeSidiro that she won’t even listen to the truth.”

Angela smiled. “You’re brilliant.”


Author's Note: I'm happy to hear that so many people like Valo, especially considering that she's essentially meant to be a caricature of myself, both appearance-wise and personality-wise. And as for Dunstan... well, a lot of his personality is drawn from some really jerk-type guys I've known, mainly three in particular... one of whom I dated when I was sixteen, one who was in his thirties and attending the same college as me and some of my friends, and one in his twenties who was a friend of my ex who was I seeing briefly. I guess you can say that this story isn't just about teens and their problems; it's a commentary on society, as a whole, about people using each other and hurting each other and not doing anything to change what's wrong with the world.