Event #1: "Quite the Pair"

[Alexander Attiyah]

Getting confirmation from Emery that he could go, Al gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and a thankful hug for good measure before heading down the hallway in the direction that Misha had gone. "Now where did she go," he muttered under his breath as he walked. He casually glanced at his surroundings, noting the numbers above the classroom doorways on his left as well as the windows revealing the rainy weather outside on his right.

Damn, it's really coming down hard, he thought as he bit the inside of his cheek. The thrumming of the rain against the glass almost made him shiver and he paused for a moment to look out at the dark clouds over the school with an annoyed frown. He was really regretting having skateboarded to school this morning rather than taking his car. But considering his luck so far that day, it seemed to be rather fitting that he'd have to walk home soaking wet.

Keeping the handkerchief he'd gotten from Emery against his cheek, he continued walking while doing his best to ignore his headache as he passed by the third class on the upper floor and turned the corner to head on down past the headmaster's office. The hallways were empty, however, with no Misha in sight. And as he came close to where the girl's bathroom was, he started debating heading downstairs towards the ground floor in case she decided to go find a human body to yell at or a garbage can to kick over. After all, it was too quiet upstairs for her to be around at this rate; she wasn't exactly the one to keep in her frustrations since she usually needed someone (or something) to vent to.

However as lightning and thunder shook the building from right outside, Al was unable to hear the sound of talking coming from the bathroom directly in front of him. And as he walked directly in front of the entrance with his gaze averted in the other direction, he was also completely unaware of the head of bright copper-colored hair now exiting at full speed through the door until he felt a sudden force instantly collide into him.

What is this? 'Everyone beat up Al' day? he muttered inwardly as he winced, pain shooting inside his head at the sudden jostling. His eyes focused down on where he had been knocked into to find a set of familiar copper eyes and matching hair looking back at him as a surprised--but relieved--expression crossed his face.

"There you are!" he said as he tried to let the pounding in his skull die down, his words a little teasing in their tone. "Was starting to think you ditched me already, Cha-cha." He stopped however as he noticed the expression on her face, and glanced from the door to the girl's bathroom back towards her with a concerned look. "You okay? You ran outta there pretty fast."

From behind the door, he could hear the sound of voices talking, and he frowned, his eyes searching the rest of the corridor. Knowing Misha, this definitely wasn't a good location to talk in seeing as there was an audience around to listen in. Plus the drab look of the hallways was a bore, and the rain and thunder made it harder to hear anyway.

Turning back to face her, he gave the red-head a reassuring smile before gesturing to the classroom nearby on their right, the 2-4 sign hanging above it. "Come on," he suggested in a lighter tone as he led the way over towards it. "We can chill in there for a bit."

[Misha Charisse Quinn]

“There’s no reason to suddenly place blame on me! Or anyone else for that matter! I’m not the one who punched Alex! I get that you’re upset about what happened, but that doesn’t mean it now has to be you against everyone else.”
Those words were still on repeat in her head as she exited the room, feeling in a somehow even worse mood than earlier. She hadn’t been placing the blame ON her! But she just couldn’t go around preaching how she was anti-humiliation when she’d taken a part of it! That was just… hypocritical. And accusing her of being against everyone else…?
Breathe. She forced herself to take a couple breaths in and out as she walked outside. No need to get this worked out over it, you’ll have forgotten all about it ‘bout tomorrow, like always. Just breathe.

And so she did… until a broad chest came and smacked right onto her nose.

 – Oof! – the sudden collision forced her to take a step backwards as she brought a hand to her face, feeling a surge of pain. Wincing, she looked up with a scowl… which quickly turned into surprise at the sight of a known face – Oh! It’s just you. – she winced once more at the mention of her little nickname. – I considered it, but shit just keeps happening. And I’m fine, yeah… just annoyed. – she glanced back inside the bathroom, whispering as not to be heard, not wanting to cause even more trouble now. In a normal moment she wouldn’t have minded, but… she was getting really tired – … for a quickly growing number of reasons.

And there she was, venting away at him without even realizing it. He seemed to just have this effect on her that made her automatically start to open up at the sight of him.
Now he was facing her with that reassuring smile of his, and her eyes curiously darted over to what he was pointing out. A classroom. Apparently, the guy was tired and wanted to rest for a bit too, and she couldn’t deny him that. Silently, she nodded and followed suit… just as she felt her nerves growing worse and worse.

Damn it. She hadn’t even realized, she’d have to be all alone with him now. And true, that’s what she had wanted from the beginning and why she had walked away from him and his sister in the first place, but… now with everything that had happened, she felt a little awkward. Not to mention the feeling of knowing that it was he who was hurt and yet he had to go pick her up and get her somewhere to “chill”. Damn it, that’s what she’d wanted in the first place, what would he think now? Why am I so self-conscious today? She thought, biting her lip as she quietly walked behind him and into the classroom. Is this all really getting to me so much? Was it because of Alex, Ryan, or Peyton? I really shouldn’t have come to this stupid reunion…

 – Mh… I was going to come get you, you know. I just… didn’t want to interrupt you two, that’s all. – she stood awkwardly in the middle of the classroom, fidgeting with her hands inadvertently. Since he’d waved at her earlier, she assumed he knew what she was talking about. – So, hm… how’s the swelling going? – she finally asked, looking up at him. For the first time since she’d bumped into him, she actually studied his features, looking for any sign of pain, a concerned look in her eyes.

[Alexander Attiyah]

Entering the classroom, Al looked around at the empty array of desks and chairs, the windows on the other side being the only light coming in. Noticing it was devoid of people, he let out a quiet breath of relief and stood to the side to allow Misha to walk in before shutting the door.

"I was going to come get you, you know," he heard her say from the middle of the room. "I just... didn't want to interrupt you two, that's all."

Al looked back over his shoulder to see her eyes were averted away from him, his gaze dropping to her hands as she fidgeted with them. She's definitely nervous about something, he thought as he raised an eyebrow in her direction, a curious and somewhat concerned expression on his own face. Is it because of what happened with Ryan? He could vaguely recall how she had screamed in the pitcher's face, but while he was sure she was worked up about that, too, he wasn't entirely sure that was the whole case...

Either way, it all made the raven-haired's own worry about her grow. But he continued to keep himself calm; he didn't want to make her feel more self-conscious than she already was.

Walking over towards one of the desks, he pushed himself up onto the wooden surface and leaned forward, propping his right leg up onto the chair in front of him so he could rest his elbow against his knee. "I know," he assured her in a sincere but lighthearted tone, a growing smile turning up at the corners of his lips. "Guess I beat you to it, Cha-cha. But thanks for that."

Al gave her a soft smile as her copper eyes eventually rose to look at him, hoping she'd know he meant those last few words. He could see the concern etched onto her face as she then asked him how his swelling was, her gaze studying his face as if to check for injuries.

Following her question, he lowered the kerchief still pressed against his cheek to display the bruise, the previous red from the initial hitting starting to turn a slightly purplish color. "I've had worse," he said with a playful roll of the eyes. Which was true; he had been in quite a few accidents before that left him a bit more beaten than he was now - including a few run-ins with other very annoyed and very angry males. But usually he had seen those fists coming and gotten in a chance for a fair fight. And this one?

Well. This one had definitely caught him off guard.

"Seriously though, Misha, I'm fine," he assured her with a smile, raising his hand to poke against his cheek as if to prove his point. The cold from the cloth was definitely helping to keep the pain at bay, though the numbness was already starting to edge off a little and the added pressure heightened the stinging, though he did his best to hold himself back from visibly wincing. "See?" he continued, his grin somewhat strained. "Totally fine. I could even take on that idiot jock for a rematch if I wanted to."

Except I totally can't, he inwardly added as his headache was all too fresh and constantly throbbing as if to keep him reminding him that escaping his inevitable post-fight-pain from hell wasn't gonna happen.

It was at that moment he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, immediately pulling his attention away from the pain. Pulling it out to see who it was, he barely had time to register the screen name 'AL-Mighty' on the sender's info before he felt it vibrate in his hands a second time as another text came in. Only this time from Emery.

Bringing up the group text from Al first, he quickly read the message and raised an eyebrow out of both surprise and amusement. "Wow, Miss Kishi actually showed up," he said out loud as he tilted the screen in Misha's direction so she could read the message as well. Giving her a few seconds to glance it over, he took it back to type out a quick reply:

AL-luring

    No biggie just grab a bucket of water. Problem solved

Pausing to bring up the other message from his sister, he found a very similar notice to get his butt back into the auditorium. But a quick glance over towards Misha as well as the pain in his head and his cheek was enough to make him want to do anything but head back to where the Wicked Witch of the West was currently.

"I don't know about you, but I'm not too keen about going back there," he said with an exaggerated sigh, his brown eyes studying the red-head's face to try and read what she was thinking.

[Misha Charisse Quinn]

She frowned at the sight of the injury as her friend lowered his kerchief (which she had a feeling was probably not his) to reveal it to her. It didn’t exactly look good, but it didn’t look awful either; hopefully it was the kind of thing that would disappear quickly enough without leaving too much of a mark. Only time would tell.

Misha quirked an amused eyebrow as he made a show of showing that he was feeling no pain while obviously trying to hold back a moue to reassure her. She smirked a little at the sight, wondering if he honestly thought he could fool her this easily; or if that was just part of his way to get her to relax.

 – Right, you look just peachy. – her smile grew as she took a couple steps in his direction until she was right in front of him. – Why you’re so tough and unbothered, I’m sure this wouldn’t hurt at all. – she raised a finger to his cheek as she spoke, faintly poking him to watch his reaction. With a low chuckle, she quickly removed it, not meaning to actually harm him further, and gently took the hand that was still holding the wet kerchief to place it back on his bruised cheek. – You should get some ice for that instead of playing the hero. Not that I wouldn’t love to see you kick Ryan’s ass; or at least watch you try. If you wanna stand a chance, you’d probably have to use your own… talents.

She smirked again at the idea. She wasn’t a revengeful soul by nature, but she was still pretty pissed at Ryan for what he’d done, even more so for apparently getting out of trouble with no consequences; but the prospect of possibly getting back to him with another prank somehow was something she was looking forward to. Except maybe this time she’d have to make sure that Alex didn’t get involved in it; she wasn’t enjoying the idea of Ryan placing his revenge on her but… she could work with that (and if the need arose, she could get him in trouble easier if he targeted her, anyway).

Her right hand still holding Al’s and the kerchief in place, she looked down at the sound of his phone vibrating. She smiled as she read the text message and saw Alex’s good-natured response. Calling this woman a witch was an understatement. She’d heard rumors that Miss Kishi was more tolerable in past years than she was now; but as far as Misha was concerned, she was a real nightmare to suffer through, and she wasn’t exactly exalted to know she’d actually decided to show up, as she was kind of hoping they’d finally be told she’d had an emergency somewhere and that the reunion was adjourned.

 – I think I’d prefer torture over getting back in there right now. – she answered, very matter-of-factly. – It’s already torture in itself anyway. Plus – she gently let go of the kerchief to point at the man’s cheek – we really gotta get you something more efficient for that, or I’ll soon be ashamed to be seen with you. Also – she playfully nudged his shoulder – someone still owes me lunch.

Just as she’d finished talking, she felt Alex’s phone vibrate in his hand for the third time in a few minutes, causing her to look down once more.

 – Quite the popular bitch, ain’t we?

[Alexander Attiyah]

Al raised a playful eyebrow towards Misha as she began to tease him back, the smile on her face a welcomed sight to the frustrated and nervous expressions she had earlier. And as she poked him in the cheek, he couldn't help but let out a tiny wince from the added pressure as she looked victoriously over at him.

"Nope. Doesn't bother me one bit," he said as he tried to keep as straight of a face as he could, only to immediately burst into a grin. The situation, no matter how strange and crazy, wasn't heavy or uncomfortable at all. And soon enough he let out a similar chuckle to Misha's own as they seemed to settle back into their normal routine.

Though he couldn't help but feel slightly surprised when he felt her warm fingers suddenly rest themselves gently over his own to bring the kerchief up against his bruise together. It was a simple and close gesture; not entirely different from other times they had invaded the other's space (most notably by putting their feet up on the other person in a battle of who could trap the other the best) but this felt different. And as he stared back at her in the dimmer room, the raven-haired couldn't help but feel slightly more aware of her presence next to him. So much so that he almost wasn't entirely aware of her comment about getting payback at Ryan, either, as his brown eyes studied her face.

"Well uhhh," he began to respond as soon as she finished, suddenly feeling shyer than before. Though after a short pause he soon let out a chuckle due to being at a loss for words. "You got me there, Cha-cha. But I better see you helping me with that plan, you got it?"

Continuing to chat and tease each other, the atmosphere in the room began to feel more relaxed, with Al feeling a lot more comfortable than he had been for most of the afternoon. True, it was usually that way when it came to the two pranking best friends--especially on the teasing and plotting part. But following everything that happened, it was a much more welcomed and appreciated feeling.

And as far as Misha's response to heading back to the auditorium went, the raven-haired simply gave her an understanding nod. He definitely could agree with her there. After all, he had already gotten punched in the face. And for as much as he wanted (and needed) to graduate, he didn't think withstanding physical abuse was part of the deal he had made with the principal... Ryan being her son or not.

"Plus," Misha continued as if reading his mind, "we really gotta get you something more efficient for that or I'll soon be ashamed to be seen with you." She lowered her hand from over his and gestured to his displayed injury, her point made even more vivid by the pain now heightening due to the absence of the cloth that was quickly drying out. "Also someone still owes me lunch."

She nudged him playfully in the shoulder, causing the raven-haired to let out a soft laugh. Though he couldn't help but glance a little at the warm spot where her hand used to be. "Don't worry, I have every intention of keeping that promise," he replied with his own teasing nudge back. "And yeah, I've been trying to go find some ice for the past..." He paused to look up at the clock in the room and frowned, unable to tell in the dim lighting what the face on it said. "I don't even know how long. It's gotta be after 6 by now, right?" At the very least, it sure felt like it - what with all the events and drama that had happened so far just in the last half hour of drama club alone.

And as if to help further the point, following the first two texts he had gotten, he was surprised to see a third message come in. This time from Andrei.

"Quite the popular bitch, ain't we?" Misha teased from her position next to him, to which the raven-haired gave her a playful wink in response. However, as his eyes scanned the message, he couldn't help but knit his brows together in both surprise and confused worry.

"Copper's missing," he informed her as he also allowed her to read the new message. "He wants our help back at the base." However as he tilted the screen to show Misha, his phone vibrated for yet a fourth and seconds later a fifth time, the first being a second reply from fem-Al in the group text and the other one from Emery, telling him to haul ass now. Pulling up the former notification, he let out a low whistle at the excessive use of all caps and exclamation points around the very urgently worded situation: Miss Kishi had found out about Amanda's club.

Damn, so that's why Miss Kishi is on a rampage, he thought as he lowered the phone slightly, feeling even more concerned than before. Sure their teacher was a witch lately--and an angry one at that--but for the most part, she was tolerable. Yet if there was one thing that made the raven-haired nervous it was the lovely future-death notice Al was dropping by him if he didn't get to the auditorium stat. He knew the Latina didn't use the m-word lightly. And if she was saying it was an m-level situation now, then it probably was indeed serious. Not to mention everyone keeps texting me about it...

Glancing over towards Misha, Al bit the inside of his cheek as he always did when he was nervous or conflicted. As serious as everything was with their fashionably-late-and-cranky drama instructor, he also didn't want to leave Andrei hanging. And definitely not when it involved Copper; that dog was the guy's baby. Plus Al had an overwhelming soft spot for the big pupper, too, and he didn't want to risk the dog getting hurt or Andrei losing his 'child'. Nor did he want to push Misha into going back to drama rehearsal, who he knew was feeling just as anti-drama club as he was in that moment... if not more so.

And right now, they mattered more to him than his own well-being should Miss Kishi see he ditched.

Giving Misha a moment to react to the texts, particularly for Andrei's request for aid, Al pulled up their janitor friend's text and typed in a quick response:

    I was headed your way earlier actually, lots of things going down rn. But yeah I'm free. Misha's with me too. We'll help you look

He lowered his phone as he looked over in the redhead's direction, raising an eyebrow at her inquisitively. He didn't want to respond to the other messages or start moving towards Andrei's until he was sure she was okay. After all, considering what all was going on, it would be a miracle if they'd get any time to relax at all despite him knowing that was exactly what they both needed right now.

"Hey, I know things are pretty close to out of control right now," he started to say as he tried to plan the best way to approach the subject, his brown eyes looking into her copper ones, "but if you need to talk about anything or someone to vent to..." He trailed off as he gave her a shy smile, his free hand lifting to run though his hair in an awkward, timid manner. He wished he was better at these kind of conversations; he was too used to making jokes or relieving tension. It made talking about deeper or more emotional subjects much harder for him to react to, even with Misha whom he always felt comfortable around. But all he could do at this point was just hope she'd understand what he was trying to say despite his complete and utter lack of knowing how--or rather, of being able--to simply say "I'm here for you."

[Misha Charisse Quinn]

"You got me there, Cha-cha. But I better see you helping me with that plan, you got it?"

 – Already working on it. – she replied, a big, naughty grin splattered on her face.

She was feeling better and better for every teasing comment they exchanged, and she felt her body gradually relax from all its tension. Sometimes she honestly wondered what she’d do with herself at the club if Alex hadn’t conveniently been forced to join around the same time as her… she would have probably jumped out a window by now.

She shrugged at his question about the time, more interested in the prospect of getting free food (did getting punched for someone invalidate a lunch offer?) than of knowing for how much time they’d wasted there already.

Her attention shifted to the phone that Alex once again tilted towards her, subconsciously grabbing it to take a better look, and she frowned worriedly.

 – Copper’s missing? Yikes. – Misha made a face, thinking back to the dog she’d had the chance to meet a few times before; a big, sweet ball of fluff and wet kisses. She hated to think what would happen to him was Miss Kishi or another teacher to find him on school grounds… or to his owner for that matter. – Is he even allowed to have him here?

Considering her friend’s worry, she had to assume the answer was negative. Yet, more and more messages kept coming in urging them to come back to the auditorium as quickly as possible, which led her to bite lower lip in frustration and anger. To hell if she cared about their teacher’s wrath right now; if she’d arrived on time, like she always demanded of them, then maybe she wouldn’t need to go student hunting now. Right now she cared more about attending to Alex and Andrei’s problems than to cater to the witche’s wishes. Plus, she was going on a rampage, right? So it’s not like she’d be right back. They’d just have to be sneaky about it; something they both excelled in.

She’d be so focused on her own thoughts, letting Alex take care of answering to his texts, that she had to look back up to him as he spoke. She gave him a curious look as he tried to tell her… something.
Oh. She realized, smiling faintly. He’s trying to be sweet. Alexander was naturally sweet, yet whenever he tried to show it on purpose, it seemed to fail utterly… which would be very cute if it wasn’t so funny.

 – Yeah, yeah. – she laughed, mercifully releasing him from having to actually finish his sentence. She understood what he meant anyway. Looking back down at her hands, once again fidgeting, though less nervously, she tried to think up her next words carefully, an amused smile still on her face. – The thing is… well. – she looked back up, looking directly into his eyes – I just wanted to say that I’m sorry for what happened. I didn’t think he would go after you like that. I’m not even sure why he did it, anyway, everyone around was laughing too and it’s not like you were the one giving him a makeover. – He should have attacked me, not you, she restrained herself from saying, knowing he wouldn’t appreciate it, despite the sentiment being clearly written all over her face. Far from her was the wish to actually get her lights knocked out, and she had the feeling Alex was better at handling a punch to the face than she would have, but it didn’t make the situation any more fair. – I will avenge you, my friend. – she quickly added, trying to ease the atmosphere once more. – But in the meanwhile… sorry you had to pay for my sins. I didn’t want that.

Feeling slightly awkward once more, she pushed herself to playfully hit the boy’s shoulder once more. She handled teasing and snarky remarks better than heartfelt apologies, anyway.

 – For the record, I think he was just jealous. He knows that make-up would have looked better on you than him. – she gave him a playful wink, before switching to a more encouraging attitude – Anyway… if you wanna go help Andrei….I’m ready when you are.

[Alexander Attiyah]

It looked like Misha was concerned about the fate of Copper running around the school as well, and at her question, Al gave her a quick shake of his head. "Definitely not when he's running around free inside the school, anyway," he answered as he continued reading and responding to the messages. It seemed like the day was just getting more and more insane with every second that ticked by. And the only thing he could really do was just hope that it didn't get even crazier.

After informing Andrei that they'd help, Al was relieved to see that Misha had understood his sad attempt at reaching out towards her, and as she teasingly--and mercilessly--laughed his offer off, he could feel the tiniest blush in his cheeks. Well at least she gets me, he muttered inwardly, though unable to hide the smile on his lips. He then watched her stand there for a moment, her gaze averted as if she was debating on whether or not to answer... or possibly wondering how to put it into words.

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for what happened," she said as her copper eyes rose to meet his. "I didn't think he would go after you like that. I'm not even sure why he did it, anyway, everyone around was laughing too and it's not like you were the one giving him a makeover..."

Al frowned slightly as the last part left her lips, already following along with what she was getting at despite the fact she hadn't said it. In truth, he didn't want anyone to get hurt, and definitely not Misha; in that regard, he was okay with taking the hit. He just hoped she didn't blame herself for what happened to him, even in the slightest amount. Though at her quick, added declaration of vengeance, the raven-haired immediately let out a quiet but lighthearted laugh.

"Can always count on you, Cha-cha," he replied back with a thankful smile, holding his fist out towards her to hit against his in a solidified promise. "But me neither. When I dared you to do it, I didn't think he'd take it like that. Plus it wasn't like it was your idea to prank him in the first place." He paused for a moment to shoot her a little smirk, hoping to lift her spirits up a little more instead. "But at least now he knows red isn't his color. Poor guy never woulda known otherwise."

She gave him a teasing nudge in the shoulder in response, causing a laugh to escape the raven-haired's lips. This was always the best part of their conversations: no one pressuring the other to say how they feel or judge them for it and always ending the topic with lighthearted jokes that instantly made them feel better. And upon seeing his best friend's slightly improved mood, Al could feel his increase automatically as well. Even more so as she gave him a playful wink, commenting how much better the make up would look on him than on his 'competition'.

"Damn straight it would," he replied back with a large grin as he set his phone down in his lap, bringing his hand up towards his hair to brush it dramatically back. At her next reply however, he gave a quiet chuckle before nodding along in agreement; they did need to get going now if they hoped to catch Copper before something bad happens.

Picking his phone back up to reply to the remaining two texts, Al pulled up the group chat and began typing his first message:

AL-luring

    Sorry Al still on the hunt for some ice. But we have a new problem, Copper is missing. Misha and I are gonna help look, will catch up with u later

Sending a similar text to Emery as well, he pocketed his phone and gestured towards the door. "Better get going or Andrei's gonna think we decided to ditch on him," he said as he jumped off of the desk he was sitting on and made his way towards the entrance to the classroom. He opened the door up a crack, peeking through the slit to see if anyone was around. Seeing no one, he opened it up a little farther, bit by bit, before sticking his head out to see the coast was clear.

"Feels like we're in a Mission Impossible movie," he teased over his shoulder towards Misha, his voice a hushed whisper of excitement. Continuing to scan the area for any signs of the Wicked Witch, he stood to the side to allow the redhead to pass before heading out himself, being as careful and quiet as possible as he made his way down the stairs and towards the service room where Andrei was waiting for them.

[Misha Charisse Quinn]

"Plus it wasn't like it was your idea to prank him in the first place. But at least now he knows red isn't his color. Poor guy never woulda known otherwise."

 – Yeah. I probably would have done something worse. – she shrugged, joking (but not really). – Oh believe me, he knows. Considering how red his face got, I’m sure he had plenty of opportunities to see it before.

At the very least, Alex could take a joke, whether his masculinity was in question or not. Who knows, maybe she should try and paint him up one day, too. She could use this as weight if he tried to make a fuss about it.
Feeling significantly better now that they had cleared things out, and even more so when her friend typed his messages to tell the rest of his buds they wouldn’t be making an appearance in the auditorium right now (thank God), she nodded at Alex’s words, urging them to get going, and followed him outside without a word. Hopefully, seeing Andrei would make her feel better too; at least as soon as they could find his pupper and calm him down first.

Her attempts at remaining silent were budged as she had to admire the show of Alex trying to act sneaky. He was both doing too much and not doing enough at the same time and it was growing funnier and funnier by the second.

 – Well go on then, Tom Cruise. You’re gonna blow our cover. – she playfully shoved him a little further outside despite knowing the risks, wondering if she was supposed to be impressed by his “ninja skills”. Rolling her eyes a little as he stood aside to make way for her, she quietly took her first steps outside, gave a swift look around, and promptly made her way down the stairs, occasionally looking back to make sure that he, and only he, was following her.