Ways to Skin a Rat.

[kynan]

Closed to Ginnifer Kohl

[W] I guesses...

---

When he had left the library, his explanation had been that he needed to use the bathroom, but if anyone had followed Kynan out, they would have seen that he was making all the wrong turns to get there. No, his 'bathroom' was running away from him now, one Ginnifer Kohl. The Hathaway twin's ears, or eyes rather, still burned, having seen what the inconsiderate idiot had typed across the screen. And he was supposed to be good at this sort of stuff? Oh Lord. Despite Kynan's initial rejection of the idea of those two seeing each other, it was fairly obvious that Gin, at least, was completely fine with it, and was expecting it, even. Part of Kynan wanted to reprimand her, for betraying him like that. But she was still Gin, and the other side within him was adamantly advocating that he should let her do what she wants, if it made her happy. There was one part of the entire dilemma that he refused to accept though. Honestly, how could anyone be happy with Erik O'Douchebag? So he was supposed to be Mr. Perfect, sure as hell didn't show in what Kynan and the others saw in him. Today was a perfect example. Yeah he had the looks, the brains and the brawn, but that was only enough to attract those girls initially. After that, none of them seemed to stay for long.

Kynan could see Gin retreating in the distance, and ran after her, his blood still pumping around him in a frenzy as he tried to maintain a hold on his temper. Damn that Erik to hell. He didn't even know why he was feeling so strongly about this. Gin and him, well, they had probably hooked up and broken it off more times than any other couple he knew, but in those periods in between, she had dated other guys, and he had dated other girls. It had never gotten to either of them before, so why now? Why Erik? What made him so special? Kynan had no friggin idea. And even if he did, there was no way in hell he would tell Erik about it, such a course of action would do nothing but inflate the prick's head even more.

Was it simply the fact that he knew the two of them so well that he couldn't stand the idea of them getting together? No, that couldn't be it. Or the fact that he hated O'Donovan's guts at times? Perhaps. Did he see it as a threat? It had become clear from early on that Erik O'Donovan would be Kynan's greatest nemesis, seriously jeopardising the twins' monopoly. But that was impossible. Kynan would never admit to something like that.

Kynan didn't say a word until he had caught up to his quarry, at which point he wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. Lowering his head so that his chin was just resting on her shoulder lightly, he spoke softly to her. "Hey Gin, you alright?" It felt somewhat odd, standing in the middle of a patch of grass in the school grounds, but Kynan could care less at this point. "Don't let that asshole get to you..."

[gin]

Gin stormed from the library, sure her face was bright red. Before she had left, she had muttered, "Nurse, female problems..." to the teacher, and that had earned her a sympathetic glance and free pass. She should've figured he had been joking the other night. Hadn't they already decided that they were just going to be buddies? Plus, if she really thought about it....Erik barely knew her. Compared to the others, he was probably the one who knew her the least. Kynan and Dodge, they were the ones who knew her the best. And, try as she might to deny it, she couldn't erase the fact that her and Ky's history spoke for itself. They were so drawn to each other, it was crazy they hadn't figured that out yet. She had dated a few guys...ok, like two besides Ky. She just couldn't seem to keep away.

She didn't know why she had said yes to Erik. It had been a spur of the moment question, and, at first, she had refused to believe him. She wasn't really that serious about it, but she wouldn't regard it a joke like Erik so clearly regarded it. Was she so undesireable, so plain and ugly and whatever else? She realized now that what the others had said, about it being a joke, had been right. Who in their right minds would go out with Gin? Even Kynan and her had broken it off, and it had been a bit longer than usual...usually, they probably would have been back together by this point. As Dodge had once pointed out, KyGin was inevitable. And the group seemed to have accepted that...it was almost like it was expected. But here Gin had gone, ruining it.

She wondered how a jerk like Erik really fit into their group, other than the fact that he was so clearly 'popular' material. And, since the clique was the popular ones at school, Gin supposed that's how he got his in. She shivered in the slightly chilly weather, realizing she had left her coat in the library. She still had her sweatshirt, and could go pick up the coat tomorrow morning or something. No way was she venturing back there, not for any large sum of money. She thought she heard footsteps behind her, but she feared her overactive emotions would get the best of her, and she did not want to cry to anyone right now. She was already the weak link, wasn't she? The nerd, the quiet one. The one that you forgot was there, forgot she existed.

One by one, the three sets of footsteps faded until she was fairly certain only one person was following her. She didn't know who it was, but she took a stab at guessing it was Dodge. She thought Ky would be pissed at her, and Bae...well, she didn't know about him. She slowed a little bit, now at the front doors of the school, fully intending to exit it and skip the rest of the day. She felt arms surround her and took great comfort from it, because she knew who this was in an instant. The scent of him, the feel of him...it was Ky, no doubt crossed her mind. She turned around so she was facing him, though didn't loosen his arms, and put her own around him and hugged him tightly, head down against his chest so he couldn't really see her face. "I'm sorry Ky...that jerk...I'm sorry."

[kynan]

It was somewhat ironic, that as Kynan stood there, trying to comfort this girl, arms around her shivering form, she wasn't the only subject of the thoughts floating through his mind. A fair few of the things in his mind at the moment were directed at another. That poofter Erik O'Donovan. To say that Kynan was simmering would be an understatement, and had he not been occupied with thoughts for Gin at the same time, he definitely would have broken something by now (hopefully that idiot's face). But as he stood there, anger flaring for that boy, he was also calmed as he thought about the girl he was now holding in his embrace. Poor Gin. She had thought that Erik had been serious, and in all likelihood, he was. He was just a selfish prat who backpedalled at the first sign of trouble. Again, Kynan reiterated in his mind the million-dollar question. How the hell did girls find him to be so great? He was just in it for his own gain, which was absolute taboo in the world of courtship.

But, enough about Erik. Kynan had to stop thinking about that backstabbing assholic moronic bastard and focus his attention on Gin, who was much nicer a subject to think about. Sure, Kynan had gone out with countless ladies in the past, but that didn't mean he had become a master at interpreting their feelings. Girls were like some massive pool of emotions, and they just picked random ones to express at the strangest of times. He didn't know how she was feeling now, but if there was one thing he had learnt from all his relationships, it was that she was feeling anything but what he thought she was feeling. Honestly, why did girls have to be so complicated? Anyone who could unlock those enigmatic mysteries could be considered a god of the male species, easily.

Ginnifer turned around, and pulled herself to him. He had to admit, it was a great feeling, and he grinned, learning down to kiss the top of her head. She had hidden her face, and he wasn't about to pry it up so that he could kiss her properly, besides, she couldn't possibly be in the mood for something like that anyway.

"I'm sorry Ky...that jerk...I'm sorry."

A look of surprise crossed the blonde's face. "What the hell are you sorry for Ginny?" As he had predicted, her emotions were nothing like what he had assumed. "Why should you be sorry? It's that dickwad who should be sorry. And I'll make sure he is," he added grimly. "Don't worry about him, I'm here for you. Just let it all out..."

[gin]

Gin was basically going into shut down mode, mainly to protect herself and keep from making a total and complete fool of herself. She didn't like showing her emotions, she felt that that would make a person too vunerable. She hated people who would see her as vunerable just because she was small, because she was so innocent looking. People felt like they had to protect her or something, as if she couldn't take care of herself or something. She was trying to go into a neutral state of mind, something she did only when she really had to, when she sure she was going to burst from whatever she was holding up inside. She was always constantly trying to make everyone else happy, and she kind of forgot to take care of herself sometimes.

Her emotions were clashing at that moment, and she knew she wasn't making sense at all, even as she trudged down the hallway towards the front door, fully intending to walk right out of them and go outside and maybe not ever come back here again. This was so un-Gin like, she was the one who loved schoolwork and essays, projects and tests. As she had made it so clear, she was the nerd, and she usually welcomed that name with open arms. Though today, you could tell she was sort of giving up on that, trying to overcome that. It was almost as if she was sick of it, sick of being what the others had clearly become so accustomed to her being, become so used to having her this way. As if she couldn't be any other way, or the world might stop turning.

When she felt his arms around her, of course she felt instantly relief. It was just the very fact that this person was here to comfort her that seemed to make her realize how much she needed him. She turned and sort of pushed herself up against him, burying her face in his chest and winding her arms around him. She felt like maybe, if she just held on tightly enough to him, he wouldn't have to leave. Maybe they could be together for a while, without all the stupid drama that seemed to follow their little group around regardless of the way she tried to stay out of it. You would think a shy girl like her would have no trouble staying out of the conflict and drama, but, somehow, she seemed to attract more attention than she really wanted, and not for the right reasons.

She clung to him tightly for a few moments, letting his comfort wash over her, feeling the kiss on the top of her head but still making no move to look up. "I dunno." she said, when he asked why she was sorry. It had just seemed like the thing to say, because that sort of was how she felt: sorry that she had let everyone else in on this, seen her embarassemt and demise. As if she could've predicted this. Finally, she raised her head to look at him, studying him for a moment. "I need...some time...I dun have any important classes this afternoon, I was thinking of skipping them...you can come...or stay." she said slowly, as if it were taking a ton of energy just to say that. She looked at him for another minute before detaching herself and picking up the stuff she just now remembered dropping when he had reached her, waiting for his decision.

[kynan]

[[... crap post.. sorry. ]]

---

Poor Gin. Compared to the other girls, she would be the most likely out of his friends to be hurt in such a way. She was timid at times, and far more studious than anyone else. A nerd, even. but neither of these things detracted from her attractiveness. They made her who she was, and it was that Ginnifer Kohl that Kynan loved. She let him bury her face in his shirt, for once not even thinking about how it would affect his beautiful shirt. His thoughts were far too occupied with the current situation.

Kynan wondered for the umpteenth time why it was that he and Gin never managed to stay together. Was he really that fickle? I mean, when this had happened, he hadn't hesitated for one second to approach the girl and comfort her, which was generally the boyfriend's job. But they weren't an item. Not at this current time anyway. So why was it that they always broke it off, then started it up again later? Chances were they were about to start it up yet again, which just fit in perfectly with the boy's schedule. Relationship #53 had ended just two days ago.

As she continued to remain silent, he just held onto her tightly, waiting for her to make the next move. It was another of the many strange things about girls, which Kynan, a master on the subject, had yet to understand fully. All he knew was that in general, you let them do the talking first. They had strange ideas about why or when you were interrupting them. Several of Kynan's past relationships had gone astray because of strange things like this. When she finally looked up and spoke, he gave a small sigh of relief. She seemed rather shaken, but that was about it. No total withdrawal, or collapsing. Her voice was just a bit shaky, but otherwise she seemed fine. So Erik could probably keep all his limbs. They'd still get broken though.

"I need...some time...I dun have any important classes this afternoon, I was thinking of skipping them...you can come...or stay."

"What sort of question is that? Do I look like the sort of person who's never skipped a class before Gin? Come on, you know me better than that." He gave her a look of mock hurt before flashing her a grin. Bending down, he helped her pick up the rest of her belongings, before giving her a small bow and putting an arm around her shoulder. "So, where are we off to, miss?"

[gin]

Ok. Yes. She would admit it any day of the week she was a nerd. No denying it over here. It was just that she didn't have anything else going for her. Dodge was the pretty one, Gin couldn't even come close to touching that category. Sel was the one who could make everyone around her at ease, make everyone happy and full of laughter. Those two were the ones people noticed, and here was Gin, the one who was just there. How she had even managed to ever convince Ky to go out with her was beyond her, it had just sort of happened. But all along, all she could think was that she wasn't good enough. Not pretty enough, not smart enough, not popular enough. Her self confidence had been growing lately, but, with this one blow, it was back down to not good enough.

She just clung to him because she was afraid that, if she didn't, he too would disappear. Leave because she was some sort of curse, something that pushed people away. Bad luck. Maybe that's why Grant had died. Maybe that's why James had been so distant lately. She pushed everyone away because of this, because of this worry and thought and wonder of was she good enough for anyone? That had changed when she started to date Ky, and, eventually, she had felt good even when they weren't together. He had sort of been the person who proved to her that she was worth something, even when she believed so fiercely that she was just a waste of space. Seemed fit that he would come to her rescue again, just as she needed it. It was a wonder they didn't stay together.

It wasn't that Gin didn't want to stay with him, honestly, she thought they were a pretty great fit, truly she did. His confidence and her shyness basically balanced each other out, and then there was the whole thing about opposites attracting. It was just that...well, he always got bored with the situation. Or they'd have some stupid, petty fight. Had Gin been hanging out with Erik? Bae? It was always so stupid, but one day, you would find them attached at the hip, the picture of perfection. Then, the next day....they'd have this awkward nature about them. Soon they'd be friends again, close but not as close as when they were dating. By now, the group of friends could pretty much tell the signs, as far as Ky and Gin went. Maybe they were too predictable.

She managed a weak smile as he joked with her, loving the fact that he could make her smile when she felt like beating the world down and refusing to acknowledge it. "I guess you do look like the guy who'd skip now and then, don't you?" she mused, still smiling a little. She gathered up most of her stuff, and he ended up grabbing the two textbooks she had been carrying from the library, and the half empty water bottle she had been toting around since she had gone and run this morning. "I have no idea, how about you surprise me? Just one condition, though: far, far away from here. And preferably the rest of the world." she was only half joking, but she shrugged. Skipping was something so un-Gin like, but she just couldn't do it today, pretend to love classes and grades and all that crap when she was so near breaking point.