Chapter Title: Waking-Up

Chapter Description: The loose ends are tied up and the school day is over. But when the truth is revealed, is dreaming worth it?

A/N: Hi there. I'm not dead, surprisingly. I'll just say that junior year is awful. Awful. If you're going to be a junior in high school any time soon, I suggest that you flunk out now and become a hobo. It's a much better idea. And you'll have much more time to write. Anyhow, enjoy this much belated final chapter of Dreamer. I hope you enjoyed the ride.

Disclaimer: I do not own DGM or any of its characters. Etc. Etc. Etc.

…

Road was never a goody-goody. She was never the nicest girl in class or voted 'Miss Congeniality'. She did, however, have a moral compass and a good sense of judgment when it came to dealing with other people. Perhaps it was not the best idea in the world to make-out with a guy who she just met. It was probably even less of a good idea to make-out with a guy who she just met whom had recently broken up with his mentally unstable mean girl girlfriend.

But Lenalee stood there with a forced smile on her face, hands on her hips. "Road, dear?" she asked, all pleasure, seemingly no business. "I was wondering if you would mind leaving your friend here and sitting with me. You see, I think you and I started off on the wrong foot. And I'd love to get to know you better. You see, you and I—"

"Lenalee," said a voice from behind them. "Stop this."

Lenalee turned around, and sighed. "I thought you might have been Allen," she said. "There to apologize."

Lavi shook his head. "I'm not Allen, Lenalee."

Road wasn't entirely sure what was happening. She looked to Daisya for help, but he seemed just as helplessly lost as she was. All she could do was watch.

"What are you even doing here, Lavi. This isn't your class. I know that your Mr. Tiedoll's pet and whatever but you can't just—"

"Can't just what, Lenalee? Stop you from bullying this girl?"

Lenalee looked down at the ugly, beige colored tiles. "She took the thing that I care about most, Lavi. Don't you think that she deserves this?" She brought a hand up to her cheek, wiping away a stray tear that had fallen. "I don't deserve this."

Road frowned. Had she thought hard about Lenalee? Yes, Allen had told her a little about her, but what did Road really know? That this girl was mean. That was the only thing. But maybe she had caught her on an off day. Maybe something had happened. Was Allen really the best person to have asked about it? Was Lavi? She had never paid much attention.

"No one does, Lenalee." When Lavi looked at her, there was something so tender in his eyes. It wasn't sympathy or pity for the girl who had been so hurt—it was love. It was just love, raw and tender, at its simplest form. Could a look like that even come from a former drug-addled boy? It was Allen who changed him, apparently, but this kind of emotion wasn't made—it was born. Lavi put a hand on Lenalee's arm. "But it's happened to you. And is it really Road's fault? And will throwing paint on her shirt or pulling her chair away when she's trying to sit down really solve anything?" He shook his head. "It won't make you feel better when you wake-up tomorrow."

Tears were streaming down her face now. She really did have a pretty face, Road thought. How had she become so twisted? "What do you know?" she spat at Lavi. The other kids in the class all averted their eyes. They whistled or stared at the posters on the walls they had seen a million times. Not a single one stepped forward to help Lavi; not even Lenalee's friends cared about the crying queen bee.

Lavi smiled, halfheartedly. "I don't," he said. "I really don't. I can't imagine having my heart broken like yours." He took a step closer towards her. She sneered, but didn't move away. "But Allen isn't the only guy out there, Lenalee. There are millions more! And even more are born every day! Yeah, he's great and all, but he also treated you like crap." Road almost wanted to laugh. "And if he wants to move on, you have to let him. And you have to move on, too."

She laughed in his face. "You're just saying that because you want to go out with me. You always have. I know you have. Since we first met you've liked me. You're such a hypocrite!" Her words stung, but her voice trembled as she said them. "You've always been jealous of Allen and me. I bet that you're just happy on the inside to see me like this. To see my relationship with Allen die. I bet you…" Her voice fizzled out, replaced by her mouth clenched shut, her chest heaving with sobs she was trying to keep in.

But the weirdest thing, Road thought, was that Lavi just stood there with that half-smile on his face, letting her attack him. When she was done, he didn't even say anything, just take her into his arms and hold her. And when she finally relaxed in his arms, he didn't look nervous about the classmates now watching them or worried about how she was feeling. He just closed his eyes and remained calm for her.

"It may not be me," he told her. "It may never be me," he said. "But I'll always care about you enough to do this for you, if you let me."

The two of them left the classroom together, with the permission of Mr. Tiedoll—who really did, apparently, favor Lavi over the rest of his students—for most of the period. Road, who didn't particularly enjoy art, spent most of the time laughing with Daisya. Because Daisya seemed to also be a particular favorite of Tiedoll's, they got away with it, but they did get quite a few angry stares from their classmates.

About ten minutes before the period was supposed to end, Lenalee returned, red-faced and angry. Without saying a word to anyone, she sat down in the back of the room. Road could feel her negative aura radiating for the next ten minutes.

Two minutes before the bell, Tiedoll let them all pack up their belongings to leave. As Road was putting her pencils back in their case, she saw Lenalee standing in front of her, much as she had done at the beginning of class. She looked up, expecting war.

But what she got was rather surprising. "Sorry," Lenalee said with little fanfare.

"I'm—"

Lenalee put a hand in front of Road, telling her to stop. "Don't say anything," she said. "Sorry. That's it. Sorry." Before the bell even rang, Lenalee walked out of the room. Tiedoll, at the front of class, just shook his head.

When Road left class, Lavi was waiting by the door. "Lenalee already left," she said, walking past him towards where she thought the locker rooms to be.

"I wasn't looking for Lenalee," he said. "I was looking for you."

Road lifted an eyebrow. "Why?"

Lavi sighed. "She's a bit much to handle. Allen couldn't put up with her for that long." He paused. "Did she apologize?" Road nodded. "Good."

"Are you two together now?" she couldn't help but to ask.

Lavi shook his head. "Of course not. She's still not over Allen. She thinks that she never will be." Someone waved to the redhead, who paused to wave back. "And even if she were to get over him any time soon, I don't think I'd be the first person that she'd go to." He sighed. "But she'll be better. And maybe, someday…" He shook his head. "Nah. But I'll keep trying."

The two of them reached the gym in silence. "Have fun," Lavi said, giving Road a pat on the back. "See you tomorrow." He walked away, smiling and waving.

…

Road was allowed to sit out of gym for the day—she didn't have a uniform, so the teacher took pity on her—meaning that the only class she had left was orchestra. Orchestra, which she recalled, was with Allen.

Had it only been that morning that she had met him? That she had been introduced to him as the 'pretty popular boy'? It seemed like so much longer than that. It felt like it had been ages. She had known him for mere hours and yet; it felt like she had never felt the same about anyone in her entire life. As she walked to orchestra, her heart beat faster in her chest. She hadn't seen him since—"Road? Road?"—she had left him in the stairwell.

When she walked in the teacher, Mr. Marie, welcomed her, telling her that she would have to wait a few days until she could audition and start playing. "There's a concert in two days," he told her. "We're in dress rehearsals and there's not enough time for you to learn the music," he had said apologetically.

She understood, of course. Music wasn't easily learned, especially when people had been preparing for a concert since mid-summer—because apparently, this orchestra was full of over-achievers—but it didn't stop her disappointment that she wouldn't be playing. She had been looking forward to it.

Instead of having class in the usual orchestra room, dress rehearsal would be held in the school's theater, where the concert would take place. Mr. Marie had told her to go watch; it would be like a study hall with good music for the next to days. It was better than nothing, at least, so after she got her locker assignment from a student conductor—Mr. Marie had already left to start rehearsal—she rushed to the theater.

The orchestra had just finished playing their scales, warming up and tuning. They were now settling in for their first number.

"It's Neah's 14 Opus: Lullaby," the assistant conductor Mr. Dark told her. "There's a very talented pianist who can actually play the piano solo. He's the only reason that we could—Road, get up—play this piece. Mr. Marie has wanted to do this—It isn't funny—since he had started. He just hasn't had a student good enough until now."

She knew who the pianist was. There was no question in her mind as to who else it could be. And so it was. To light applause from his classmates, Allen walked up to a piano sitting on stage left. After flexing his fingers and playing a quick scale to test it, he nodded at the conductor. Mr. Marie readied his baton and the piece began.

It started with a soft piano solo, the beginning of the lullaby, with only the string bass accompanying it. After a few phrases, a flute joined them. When the melody came back, it came in full force. The whole orchestra behind him, Allen pounded on the keys, eyes shut, the music memorized. It was like he was in a different world, like the music was all that mattered to him.

And suddenly, Road felt very alone.

It was true; she had only known him for one day. What did she really know about this boy with his charming smile and beautiful music? She knew the same that she knew about Lenalee. And that was nothing.

"Let me try," another voice said. "Road? Are you awake?"

She wanted to cry, but tears didn't come. The music swelled, and so did her insecurities. What did she think, coming here? Expecting to make a new life, a better life. A life with someone like Allen? She was just a Noah. She was just a—

A Noah?

"Road, we have to get going. We can't wait around for you all day."

She thought about his lips on hers. That would never happen again. She would make sure it didn't. They were from two different worlds, she and Allen. Even if the music he played was beautiful, she would never fit in. Never be a part of it; never be a part of his world.

The song was dying down; it was back to the piano, flute and bass for the final phrases. Road's eyelids flickered open. But suddenly, the music stopped. Allen stood up at the piano, his hand outstretched. "Don't!" he yelled. "Don't Road; there's still time! There's still—"

…

"Good morning star shine, the earth says hello!" The light in her room was bright and hurt her eyes. It was too early in the morning for such an obnoxious burst of sunlight. Just a moment ago she had been sleeping, and now her personal hell was coming in the form of bright light and chipper voices. Cyr- her father's wake-up calls were always difficult to stomach, though today seemed to be especially bad, probably due to the fact that Road was somewhat dreading waking up and facing the important day that awaited her.

"Shut up." The words were cruel sounding coming from her tired mouth, but she knew that her new father wouldn't mind. Cyril adored her; that much was certain. It would wound him for just a moment, but no serious harm would be done. Like rubber, nothing seemed to stick to Cyril for long.

Pouting for a moment, Cyril sat down at the edge of Road's old bed. "Now Road, I know that you're a growing young woman and that you have lots of untapped emotions that you feel the need to take out on me, your father, because you have nowhere else to direct them, but you need to learn to hold your temper." For a moment he paused, staring out into the dark blackness that made up her world. "Today's an important day. We're going to go kill the exorcists."

Road blinked her eyes. For a moment—granted, just for a moment—she felt as if she were having déjà vu, or something. Like she had seen this all before in a dream. But she shook her head; this was a morning just like any other.

In fact, she didn't think she could remember dreaming the night before at all.

She looked over to Tyki, who had apparently helped her father in their project to wake her up. He was—as per the usual—smoking a cigarette. "You were talking in your sleep," he said. "Something about Allen Walker." She blushed. "You really hate him that much?"

She grinned. "If you think I like him," she said. "You must have been dreaming."

…

Fin