Chapter 11: I'm Hurting-

Chase's POV:

I tried not to allow the emotional pain I was obviously feeling show through via my facial expression. Now I can place the look Bree desperately tried to keep off her face, guilt. She knew how I felt about her, yet agreed to date Kaz for the time being. I suppose I'm not any better. I did have a strong suspicion that Bree harbored romantic feelings towards me, which I ignored when I pushed myself to be okay with dating Skylar. Bree wasn't able to hide how hurt she felt in time as soon as I told her I had a date with Skylar. I feel as if that stung more than it would've if I was going to the theater with practically any other girl on the planet. Bree's always been insecure, whether that's always been apparent to everyone or not, when it comes to Skylar and her. She feared that everyone preferred Skylar to her, and that Skylar was the superior female hero on the team. When Bree acquired some superpowers, I assumed that her fears vanished. It has been made clear though that that's not the case. Bree quickly looks down, and brushes a lock of hair behind her ear. "Skylar, huh?", she asks. She tries to keep her voice from cracking, she fails. I take a step towards her. "Kaz, huh?", I counter. I let my hurt bleed through this time. I want her to know she's not the only one suffering in this situation. She looks back up at me. Tears are streaming down her face, I quickly wipe them away and bring her into another hug. I suppose I should explain my actions.

"I- she confessed her feelings towards me when I went to check on her. I made it clear that I didn't feel the same way, but I did say I'd keep an open mind about things. She asked me to go to the movies with her, and I accepted. I knew there was a chance I'd hurt you by doing so, I also knew I was hurting her by giving her false hope and mixed signals. I'd be lying if I didn't admit that my intentions are of selfish origin. I accepted in hopes I could force myself to feel something more than platonic for her, and in hopes I could force myself to feel something less than romantic for you.", I admit. Bree hugs me tighter as she tries to stifle her cries. A moment later she makes her own confession. "When I went to apologize to Kaz, he kissed me. I let him, and even kissed him back. He asked me out, and I obviously said yes. Throughout that entire conversation, I couldn't help but feel like something was missing. That something was you. I wanted to be making out with you instead of him, I wanted you to be asking me out on that date instead of him, and I hate myself for that. I'm doing the exact same thing you are. I'm forcing myself into a relationship I don't want to be in, just so I can try to forget about you.", she says. Now it's my turn to expel a few tears. They silently trickle down my face, and absorb into Bree's shirt. Bree lets go, and steps back. Her eyes are red and puffy, her recently shed tears are still very visible on her face. I'm sure my appearance is quite similar.

Bree's POV:

God, I feel like such a terrible person. I'm hurting Kaz by acting like I'm actually interested. A few days ago, and I definitely would've been. By extension I'm hurting Oliver as well. They're practically a package deal, you hurt 1, you hurt the other. I'm hurting Skylar by secretly making out with the guy she likes. I'm going against the girl code at this point. I'm hurting Chase by dating Kaz. I knew I'd be hurting him from the get-go. Then lastly, I'm hurting myself. I've put myself in a shitty situation that I can't get out of without hurting half the team. I step back from Chase, and it looks like he was crying as well. The past day and a half has been 1 giant shit show. I give him a pointed look. "You do realize you have to go downstairs later and break the news to Oliver, right?", I ask him. He immediately face palms and groans. I'll take it he forgot for a split second that Skylar and Oliver broke up literally just hours ago. "How do you think he's gonna take it?", Chase asks. I give him a 'do you really have to ask' look. He runs a hand through his hair. "Maybe you should put off dating Skylar, at least for now?", I offer. He immediately makes eye contact with me. "Well maybe you should postpone your dinner date with Kaz for now.", Chase retorts. I roll my eyes and cross my arms. "I didn't suggest that for MY sake if that's what you're thinking. I only meant since she JUST broke up with Oliver a few HOURS ago, you might wanna hold up on that. That is, if you still wanna be friends with Oliver.", I say.

Chase narrows his eyes at me. Is he trying to pick a fight or something? "Of course I still want to be friends with Oliver. Look, I see your point, but what difference would putting off our date for a day or two make?", Chase asks. I stiffen. He said he was gonna call Mr. Davenport tomorrow. He made it seem like Uncle Douggie would be on his way here, or WE'D be on our way to the Academy tomorrow. Did he forget about that? Does he all of a sudden not care? "You'd be surprised.", I snap. He lets out a loud sigh, and clasps his hands together. If he thinks he's gonna preach to me whatever bullshit he's got floating around in his brain, he's got another thing coming to him. "I get that you're still jealous of Skylar, but-", he starts before I cut the mother fucker off. Because seriously DID NOT JUST GO THERE. "Excuse me? I'm not jealous of Skylar. I might have been briefly before in the past, but I'm perfectly happy with myself and my status in this team. Besides, there's NOTHING to be jealous about.", I say. He quirks a brow at me. I throw my hands up in defeat. "Fine! You wanna date Skylar, go right ahead, but don't come crying to me when you lose Oliver and Kaz as friends!", I snap. "I don't want to date her, but I don't have any other choice in the matter!", he snaps back. I back up. "What happened to calling up Mr. Davenport tomorrow, huh? What happened to going to the Academy tomorrow? Did you forget about all that already?", I retort.

Chase's POV:

Bree pushes me backwards after her bombardment questions. I stumble a bit, but quickly find my footing. "How could I possibly forget about that?! It's my last-ditch effort to justify us being together!", I practically shout. Bree clamps her hand over my mouth, so I lick her hand. She quickly lets go, and shoots me a look of disgust. She super speeds to the bathroom and back. "THAT was disgusting.", she complains. I let out a snort of amusement. "Well I guess you shouldn't have put your hand over my mouth in the 1st place then.", I counter. She rolls are eyes, and chuckles. "Well YOU should've kept your voice down in the 1st place.", she retorts. I shrug. "Fair enough.", I concede. She sighs. "Why are we doing this?", she asks me. I don't quite understand what she means by that. It would've been a tad bit helpful if that sentence had a little more context behind it. We've discussed a lot of things we're doing or are going to do in the past few minutes. "Doing what?", I ask. She reaches for my hand, and I give it to her. She intertwines are fingers, and I feel myself blush. I've briefly held Bree's hand before, but it's different this time. This time I know for sure she feels the same way I do. "Pretending. Pretending to be interested in people we're clearly not interested in. Pretending not to be interested in each other when we clearly are. What's the point of all this?", Bree asks me. I ponder that for a moment. This wouldn't be the 1st time I've questioned our life choices, and I'm sure it won't be the last.

Bree's POV:

You know what? Screw doing what others might think is the 'right' thing to do. What's the point of it all if we're both miserable by the end of it. I want to be happy, I want both of us to be happy. Skylar broke up with Oliver because she wasn't happy. Everyone can argue that she did that because it was the right thing to do, and I'd like to believe that's why she did what she did. I think that was only part of the reason though, she made it clear last night that she wasn't as happy with him as she led everyone to believe. She immediately asked out Chase, fully risking her friendship with him, and also fire and ice. She risked that all to be happy. So why can't I risk the same, if not more, to be happy too? "We're not supposed to feel the way we do. Society deems it wrong. After we talk to Mr. Davenport and Douglas, and it turns out we're biologically related-", Chase reasons before I cut him off. I already know what he's going to say. We've said the same thing to each other, and I've told myself all this multiple times already now. "I don't care.", I say. Chase gives me a confused look. "But-", he starts. I of course cut him off again. "But nothing. No matter what happens tomorrow, it won't change how I feel about you. I don't care what our teammates, our family, or the rest of the world thinks. I want to be with you, and I know you feel the same, obviously. I want to be happy, I want us to be happy.", I finish. Chase smiles at me, and grabs my other hand. My heart feels like it's about to burst out of my chest.

Chase's POV:

I never thought, that out of the two of us, that Bree would be the one to fight for our relationship. I thought I'd be the one trying to convince her to fight for us. "So should we cancel our dates then?", I ask. Bree chuckles while nodding. Us agreeing ultimately wasn't the right thing to do. It was dishonest, and for selfish purposes. Skylar and Kaz deserve better than that. I let go of her hands. "Well then, it looks like we have some people we need to talk to.", I say in a lighthearted tone of voice. I hope Skylar won't be too crossed with me after this. I was the one who decided on making our trip to the movies an actual date. I had the chance to make my feelings even more clear than I already had, but I just ended up figuratively muddying the waters. Bree gives me a half smile. "Yeah, I guess we do. I'll talk to Oliver 1st real quick before I see Kaz. I think we should wait until after we get back tomorrow to tell them about us.", she suggests. That would be the better option than telling them now. It would be like metaphorically rubbing salt on the wound for Kaz, Skylar, and even Oliver. "Good idea, it'll give us some more time to actually figure out how to break the news to them, and I'll go talk to Skylar while you talk to the boys. You better hope Kaz didn't already tell Oliver that you two are going on a date tonight.", I reply. Her eyes slightly widen, then she nods. She turns around, and super speeds down the hallway and stairs. I watch her go, then inhale a deep breath before retracing my steps to my previous location.

Bree's POV:

I super speed down the hallway and stairs after Chase brings up the fact that Kaz most likely texted Oliver and told him the 'good' new as soon as I left. I reach the living room, and Oliver's thankfully still there. Well, at least I didn't have to hunt him down. He's chilling on the couch while scroll through his phone, so I'm pretty sure he hasn't noticed me yet. I walk over and sit next to him. He doesn't even glance up from his phone. "Hey Bree, how'd it go with Kaz?", Oliver asks. How the Hell did he even know it was me? How does everyone always know it's me? "How'd you know it was me? You didn't even look up from your phone.", I ask. He rolls his eyes before actually setting his phone down to look at me. "You do realize that whenever you use your super speed you make a 'whoosh' sound as you cut through the air, right?", he asks me. Wait, seriously? Huh, I obviously can't hear the 'whoosh' sound when I'm using my super speed, and I guess I never really payed close enough attention to when Skylar used her super speed. "Huh, how'd you know it wasn't Skylar?", I ask. I immediately regretted asking him that as soon as the question left my mouth. I shouldn't be bringing her up right now. "Hey, it's fine. To answer your question, you don't smell like her.", he answers. I guess my facial expression expressed what I was thinking. I quirk my brow at him. What does how I smell have to do anything? Wait, is he trying to say I smell bad??

Chase's POV:

I stand at the entrance to Bree and Skylar's room. I'm almost too nervous to knock, but I push myself to do it anyway. This situation is entirely my fault, so I have to man up and take responsibility for it. The door swings open to reveal Skylar's smiling face. "Hey Chase! I thought you were coming by later tonight, or did you want to hang out some before then?", Skylar asks. I inhale. I can do this, I HAVE to do this. I can't do to Skylar, what she did to Oliver. "I didn't come here to hang out, I came here to talk to you, again.", I explain. Her happy expression shifts to a slightly concerned one. I assume that she believes that something's wrong, and she'd be right to assume that. "Okay, did you want to come in again?", she asks me. "I think that'd be best .", I immediately reply. I need to get this done and over with, so we can all move past it. I wonder if Skylar's considered dating Kaz? She invites me in, then shuts the door after I enter. I move to sit on the same spot of her bed I sat at when I was last here just minutes ago. She naturally sits next to me. "Is something wrong?", she asks in a concerned tone of voice. She's such a good friend, and she'll be an amazing girlfriend to whoever's lucky enough. I'm just not that person. I sigh before I begin. "I'm afraid there is. I think it'd be best if we cancelled our date for tonight, or just went together as friends.", I say. Her brows furrow together. I really don't want to further explain myself, or my reasoning, but I think I'm going to have to.

Bree's POV:

Oliver rolls his eyes yet again. Jesus, what's his deal? I mean besides getting dumped by the girl of his dreams. Okay never mind. "You smell like artificial flowers, while Skylar smells like artificial fruit.", Oliver explains. OH, that's what he meant. He was talking about difference in our perfumes. I nod my head. "So anyway, how'd things go with Kaz?", he asks. I wouldn't be down here if I hadn't completely patched things up with Kaz. I wonder how pissed he's gonna be after I cancel our date. I feel bad for making myself seem so interested. Damn it, did I really just pull a Skylar a hot minute ago? "Um, pretty good actually. I apologized, even though HE was the one who misinterpreted things, and we worked things out.", I say. I obviously leave out the part where I made out with him and agreed to go out on a date. He nods. "How are you, actually?", I ask. I can't imagine what he's feeling right now. He loved Skylar, and she basically stomped on his heart in the end. Which is what I'm probably going to end up doing to Kaz. "I've been better, I guess. It hurts, obviously, but it was probably for the best.", Oliver admits. He can't possibly be giving up on Skylar that easily. He's wanted things to work out between them for so long. "You're only on a break, there's a chance you both might get back together.", I reply hoping it might make him feel better. He dryly laughs. Well that's not a good sign. "I highly doubt it, and even if we do somehow get back together, it won't be the same as it was before.", he says.

Chase's POV:

"I don't understand. YOU said it was a date, you said you were going to be open minded. You said you'd give us a chance.", Skylar argues. Skylar's naturally pretty sweet and open to compromise, so it's sometimes easy to forget she can be as stubborn and fiery as Bree. I reach for her hand, but she yanks it away from my grasp. "I did say all of those things, and I wasn't lying about being open minded and giving us a chance. It was a mistake on my part for calling this a date. Oliver and you just broke up a few hours ago, I think it's a little too soon for you to be in a relationship again. I think you need to a few days at least to make sure this is what you really want, and that you're not acting irrationally. I also don't want to risk hurting Oliver, and possibly losing my friendship with him by rushing into things with you.", I counter. Skylar's hard expression softens when I mention Oliver. I could tell she was ready to argue with me about this, insist that she knows how she feels and what she wants. Though, the last thing she wants to do is hurt Oliver anymore than she already has. "I guess you are right about it being a little soon. The last thing I want to do right now is hurt Oliver even MORE than I already have, and I couldn't ask you to risk your friendship with him for me. That'd be extremely selfish of me.", Skylar admits. I smile at her, and she returns it, just a tad bit sadder than mine. I reach for her hand again, and she lets me take it.

Bree's POV:

"Why won't it be the same?", I ask. If anything, things should be better than they were before. If they get back together, it'll be because Skylar genuinely has feelings for Oliver and wants to be with him. He scoffs. "I guess it's more like, I don't want things to be the same.", he starts. I nod, but don't say anything. I have a feeling he's gonna go on a mini rant, which I kinda hope he will. I want Oliver to be able to talk to me about personal stuff just like he would with Kaz or Chase. Well that, and I'm low key putting off talking to Kaz. I just don't know what to say to him. Okay, that's a lie, I do know what to say, and I kind of have a general idea of how I'll word it. I'm afraid of how he'll react. What if things end up being awkward between us? What if we end up being not as close as we were? "Skylar and me's relationship wasn't healthy, and I think you know that. She was lying about liking me, and I put her on a pedestal. If there's a next time with us, I want her to be real with me. I don't want her to fake anything just to 'spare my feelings' or whatever. I'm gonna treat her like a regular person, because superhero or not, that's what she is. I lost sight of that for the longest time, due to me basically being a mega fan. Chase and Kaz helped me realize that if a relationship's to work, both people need to treat each other equally.", Oliver finishes. WOW. Never in a million years did I think Oliver would admit his Skylar obsession was unhealthy.

Chase's POV:

"We can still go hang out at the movies later as friends if you'd like.", I offer. I knew she already had her hopes up for that, and spending a couple hours out of the apartment would do her some good in my opinion. She silently nods, then things fall into an almost awkward silence for a moment. "So, a few days?", she asks me. "Huh?", I immediately question back. She rolls her eyes and sends a playful smirk my way. "You said I need a few days to make sure this is what I really want. So, in a few days, if this is what I really want, we'll go on an actual date?", she asks. Ugh, why did I have to say I'd keep an open mind? Right, because it wouldn't be fair to her if I didn't at least give her a chance. Yet it also wouldn't be fair to agree to go out with her in a few days when Bree and I will be announcing our relationship tomorrow. "How about this, we'll go to the movie tonight as friends. We'll hang out and see if this works. If we both feel a connection, then we can take this further.", I offer. I know I won't feel a connection tonight, but even if I did, my connection with Bree is stronger. I hate to drag this false sense of hope out much longer than necessary, but she really won't drop the subject. "Deal", she agrees. I really should've squashed any hope for us she had when she 1st confessed her feelings towards me. I didn't of course for my own selfish reasons, which I'm coming to regret more and more every time Skylar opens her mouth.

Bree's POV:

"Wow, I'm really proud of you, Oliver.", I say. It does take some balls to admit you have a problem, and whether or not the rest of the team completely agrees with this, Oliver did have a problem. He lightly chuckles while looking down. "She told me that she had feelings for someone else, and that she wanted to 'explore' those feelings.", Oliver says. I let out a deep sigh. Why'd she have to tell him that? I mean I get that she was just trying to be completely honest, but way to kick a man when he's down. "She shouldn't have told you that.", I rebuke. Oliver quickly shakes his head. "No, I'm glad she told me. It's better that I hear it from her than from Kaz courtesy of 1 of his 'recon missions'", Oliver says. I can't help but laugh, that seems like something Kaz would do. Kaz of course wouldn't tell him that just to be a gossip. They're always so open with each other, I swear, they're probably closer than Chase and I are. "I think I might have feelings for someone else too.", Oliver admits. My eyes widen and I sit up straighter. YOU'VE GOT TO BE SHITTING ME. I can't really imagine Oliver liking someone OTHER THAN Skylar. I mean, that'd obviously happen if him and Skylar call it quits for good, but I just can't really picture it. "Really, who?", I eagerly ask. He scoffs at me. Okay, yes, I'm aware how eager I sound but I WANT TO KNOW THAT TEA. "It doesn't really matter. I'm pretty confused about the whole thing. I'm not sure if I like her, or if I just THINK that I like her.", Oliver dismisses.

Chase's POV:

I release her hand, and slowly rise. She hops up, and opens her mouth to speak. "So I guess I'll see you in a few then?", she confirms. I immediately nod. I move to leave, but stop in my tracks. "If things don't work out between us, will things become awkward? Will our friendship suffer from this?", I ask clearly concerned. I realize that Skylar's dealt with a lot today, I think we all have. I had to ask this though, I have to know. Because tomorrow, I'll be in a relationship, and it won't be with her. I don't want to avoid her, and I don't want her to feel awkward around me. "Things could never be awkward between us. No matter what, you'll always be my friend and teammate.", she soothes. I send her a relieved smile, 1 to which she returns. "I'm glad.", I reply. Then I make my leave. I don't know if Bree's still speaking with Oliver, or if she's moved into Kaz. Either way, I don't want to interrupt. I'll just send her a quick text to confirm. "Just finished speaking with Skylar. Are you still conversing with Oliver?", my text to her reads. A moment later I read her response. "Yeah, and boy do I have tea for you later. Don't come downstairs yet.", Bree's text said. Well, I guess I can't go down to HQ then. I don't want to go back into the girls' room for what I believe is the 3rd time today. I suppose I could spend time with Kaz, but Bree hasn't spoken to him yet. What if he won't shut up about his date with Bree? I don't think I'd be able to handle all that. I guess I'll just hide out in the bathroom until I get the okay from Bree.

Bree's POV:

This could be really good for Oliver. This would be the perfect chance for him to find out what it's like to be in a healthy relationship. "Well there's only 1 way to find out.", I say. "How?", he asks right away. Who's the eager 1 now? Lol. "Kiss her, if you feel something, then you obviously like her. If there's no spark, then you don't like her that way.", I advise. That's how I knew I didn't like Kaz in that way. He's a good kisser, don't get me wrong, but there wasn't a spark. It felt like there was something off, or missing. Kissing Chase felt right, the spark was there and it ignited a fire in the pit of my stomach. "What am I supposed to feel?", he asks. Didn't he feel it whenever he kissed Skylar? If he didn't then they really weren't meant to be, at least for now that is. "A spark is being ignited inside of you, it should just feel right. Your pulse should race, your heart should be beating out of your chest, butterflies should be fluttering around in your stomach, the kiss should leave you breathless.", I describe. Oliver rolls his eyes, so I lightly elbow him. "You sound like such a hopeless romantic.", he jokes. I laugh with him. "Do you speak from experience?", he asks me. Oh come on, don't tell me you think I'm giving this advice based on Rom-Coms I've seen in the past. "Past experience, yes.", I reply. I threw in the 'past' part hoping he wouldn't ask about it too much. "Do you think she'd let me kiss her?", he asks me. I mean, depending on the girl, possibly. "Just go for it, catch her slightly off guard. Don't lean halfway in then hesitate, you have to follow through with it.", I instruct. Then for the 2nd time today a teammate that I care deeply about, but don't have any romantic feelings for, kisses me.