Summary: Johnny gets on Robert's nerves and is sent away. What is the reasoning behind this?

A/N - This is an old story I dug out of my archives. On a site, I continue to be stalked relentlessly by AnotherJohnnyDeppUser. Check out their silly reviews on 'Chains of Fate Revised' for a good chuckle. There's more about them on my profile so if you're keen for a backstory, there's stuff there.

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Johnny glared daggers at Enrique. "Enrique, just get the hell out of here! No one wants to see your ugly mug," he shouted, a visible vein throbbing in his forehead. Johnny had spent the last five hours trying to tell Enrique that his hair looked like a pineapple. "Your hair looks like a pineapple!" Johnny added, his patience wearing thin.

Enrique's mouth dropped open in shock. How dare Johnny insult his lovely hair? "You're just jealous... because yours looks like a carrot!" Enrique retorted, feeling quite smart.

Johnny could feel blood boil in his veins. He wanted to wipe that gloating smirk of that ugly face, but he knew if he attacked Enrique, he would be subjected to an hour of Robert's family history stories again. He shuddered at the thought. No on deserved such a cruel punishment. "My hair does not look like a carrot!"

Enrique nodded. "Yes, it does! Doesn't it, Oliver?" he asked, glancing quickly at the French boy.

Oliver wasn't sure what to say. Agreeing with Enrique meant Johnny would bash him up later in private and threaten him not to say a word to Robert or, if he agreed with Johnny, Enrique would tell the world he had a sex change. Of course, that wasn't true, but Enrique was very persuasive. "I... erm... I think both your hairstyles are perfectly fine the way they are!" he concluded quickly. Best to play it safe and agree with them both than risk a war. Luckily for him, both returned to the argument.

"You're ugly Johnny," Enrique spat. "And stupid."

At this time and moment Robert decided to enter the scene. He turned to Johnny, an expression of utmost disgust on his face. "I've had enough. Johnny, you are to leave this castle immediately!"

Johnny's mouth dropped open with shock. "What?!" He had never been sent out of the castle before. "That's not fair! Enrique started it!"

Robert shook his head. "I will not tolerate such childishness under this roof! You are to leave and head to this destination," he said, handing Johnny a slip of white paper.

Johnny quirked a brow. "I have to go towards a special destination?" That was odd.

Robert nodded. "Yes, now leave immediately."

Sighing to himself, Johnny pocketed the paper and stormed out of the castle. Something was up; Robert would never send a teammate out of the castle for no reason... would he? Johnny thought hard and sighed heavily. He was clueless. After several metres of walking, he finally arrived at his destination. Instead of looking at a jail for juveniles, he was looking at a cafe... Oliver's cafe. Things were getting weird.

"What the hell..." Johnny said aloud. He observed his surroundings and spotted a pink haired girl sitting with a guy with blonde hair. He narrowed his eyes. Mariah! And... Mystel?! How odd. "Hey guys," he said, strolling up to them.

"Johnny?" Mariah asked, sounding surprised.

"Why are you here?" Mystel added, equally confused.

Johnny shared the same confused look. "I was going to ask you the same thing..." he turned to Mariah. "I thought you were dating Rei?"

Mariah shook her head. "No, I found him with Salima so I dumped him," she said casually. "Besides, Mystel is better-looking," she said, flashing Mystel a grin.

Mystel smirked. "Damn right."

Johnny was quite taken aback. He had always thought Mystel was the nice, gentle, modest guy... not the nice, gentle, cocky guy. Mystel could do well as Majestic with that attitude, Johnny thought. But he to admit, Mystel was better looking than Rei. He shuddered. Was he turning gay? Was it normal for males to rate other males on the attraction basis? He knew females did, but guys? "Cool," said Johnny, nodding slightly. Awkward silence. Johnny struggled to think of something to say but was saved when Oliver came running over.

"Hey Johnny!" Oliver said, beaming. Johnny frowned. Oliver never smiled at him. The petite French feared Johnny because Johnny liked beating people up. "Can you sit over here?" he said, pointing at the table next to Mystel and Mariah.

Johnny sat down feeling extremely confused. What on earth was going on?

"Ah... your date is here!" Oliver suddenly exclaimed. Johnny swore his heart skipped a beat. Date?

A girl dressed in a lab coat walked over to Johnny's table and sat across from him. Johnny's mouth dropped open in shock as he examined her features more closely. The girl had shoulder-length ginger hair, and her eyes were protected by thick framed glasses. Nerd! This could not be happening... no wonder Robert sent him away. He was set up! "Oh my god..."

The girl frowned. "My name is Emily." Great. He was stuck with the self-absorbed nerd from the All Starz.

Johnny rolled his eyes. "I wasn't talking to you." He was going to kill Enrique! He knew Enrique had something to do with it! Enrique purposely made him angry, so Robert would have an excuse to send him away to Oliver's cafe! Another thought occurred to him. He was at Oliver's cafe so Oliver could spy on him! "Those bastards!"

Emily raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

Johnny glared at her. "Yes."

Emily readjusted her glasses and looked at him intensely. "Mind telling me about it?"

"Why the hell would I want to tell you anything?" Johnny replied harshly. "This whole thing is a set up! My so-called friends set me up on a date!"

Emily raised her other eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

Johnny sighed. He thought Emily was smart. What a disappointment. "I made Enrique angry this morning and Robert kicked me out and told me to come here at Oliver's café, so he can spy on me. They sent you here because Enrique wanted to choose an ugly girl to make fun of me." His expression darkened. He continued to rave, not taking any notice of the hurtful expression on Emily's face.

Emily sniffed. Guys always insulted her, calling her a nerd. She had thought Johnny would be different coming from a prestigious family, but he was just like the typical guy: Shallow. The only thing he cared about was how bangable a girl was. She stood up from her chair. "Enrique didn't call me. I came on my own accord."

Wait. What? "What do you mean?" Johnny asked.

She sighed. "Enrique was going to call Julia to be your date for the day, but I asked Julia if I could take her place instead. She agreed, so I came thinking you might be different from the guys I know. I guess I was wrong," she replied coldly, turning her back to him. She had to keep her emotions in check. She would not break down, especially not in public.

For the first time in his life, Johnny felt truly ashamed. He reflected on his rant and realized he had called her 'ugly' without even noticing. "Err..." he stared, thinking of something to say. Unfortunately, apologies never came easily to him. On top of that, he always felt awkward around females mostly because Enrique always stole the girls away from him. He raked a hand though his messy auburn hair.

Emily raised a hand in the air, the back of her hand facing Johnny. "I don't want to hear your pathetic apology; you made yourself very clear," said Emily. "Goodbye." Without another word, Emily left the cafe.

Johnny watched helplessly as Emily stormed off. What was he going to do?

He never expected his comments to hurt Emily and was surprised to see her walk as fast as possible in the opposite direction. She didn't want to be near him. She couldn't bear to see him. Even hearing his name caused her to cringe. Johnny was most surprised at his own feelings of despair and helplessness. He hadn't meant to cause offense.

His temper always got the better of him. Damn Enrique! Damn Robert! Damn Oliver! The three members of the Majestics had the amazing ability to make him angry... especially Enrique, who seemed to try extremely hard to annoy him. Just what was it about Johnny that drew annoying people to him like flies? He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. What was he going to do about Emily?

A sudden wave of fear overcame him. What if she told her teammates about the fiasco? He wasn't scared of the Americans by any means, but he knew the All Starz were very protective of Emily and would not hesitate to make his life a living hell. He shuddered at the thought of being insulted every single second of the day for the rest of his life.

"What on earth am I going to do?" Apologizing didn't come to him naturally. In fact, he had never apologized to anyone before. Ignoring Emily seemed like a good idea, but the remaining members of the All Stars would come after him.

Johnny sighed and ran a hand through his hair. It was a habit he did every time he felt frustrated. What right did his friends have to place him in a situation like that anyway? He wasn't the dating type, nor did he wish to be in a relationship. If it was anyone's fault, it was them. He tried to justify his actions in his mind, but he couldn't fight off the nagging voice telling him he did it to protect himself. He didn't want to feel for someone else. It scared him.

Insulting the girl seemed like a good method to make her hate him. Hating him would make him lose any form of appreciation he held for her and those unwanted emotions would fade. It was a stupid line of thought, but Johnny believed it would work. Until now. He was lost in his thoughts when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around, his eyes blazing with anger. "What do you want... Mystel?" Mystel was the last person he expected to approach him.

"What happened back there? Emily got pissed and ran off crying," Mystel said.

The Scotsmen rolled his eyes. "I didn't notice," he replied sarcastically.

"You know, you should probably apologize to her."

Frustration was building up quickly within Johnny. He knew what he had to do, but he wasn't sure what words to say to her. Hell, he wasn't even sure if the girl would even look at him. His harsh words had hurt her deeply, he could tell by the look on her face. "I know, all right? I screwed up."

"Hell yeah you did. That's why you oughta be a man and apologize."

Johnny glared at the blond. "You're very good at stating the obvious, aren't you?"

Mystel shrugged. "It's part of my charm." He jerked his head in the opposite direction. "She's headed that way. I'd start running after her before things really get out of hand."

His shoulders slumped. A feeling of helplessness overcame him. "I don't know what to say," Johnny admitted. Dealing with girls was Enrique's speciality; his speciality was beating people up and issuing threats.

Mystel raised an eyebrow. "Well, what do you think of Emily?"

"She's all right." He didn't know much about the girl other than she was a talented tennis player, a skilled blader and highly intelligent. She held herself with confidence; a trait that appealed to him greatly. He had been attracted to other girls before, but his own ego would never let him admit he felt lust. "I don't know her that well."

"And you insulted her? Let me guess, you called her ugly?"

Damn that blond. Was it just him, or were all blonds painful to be around? They seemed to know too much than they should. Bastards. "I may have said a few bad things, but I didn't mean them. I was just angry because Robert, Enrique and Oliver set me up on this stupid date!" Johnny raged. He didn't care that he was confiding in Mystel. All rational thought had faded.

"Go chase her man," Mystel said, giving Johnny a push in the right direction. "Tell her how you really feel." He winked cheekily and Johnny flipped his middle finger at him. Mystel laughed and headed back to the cafe to Mariah.

Johnny didn't have a date to return to; he had a date to run after. He jogged at a reasonable pace around the block searching frantically for sign of the ginger haired girl. Panic gripped his mind; she was nowhere to be found. What if she had already told her teammates about the nasty Scotsmen? "Emily!" he shouted. Where in the hells was she? "Emily!" he called out again.

Nothing.

He covered more ground whilst he called out Emily's name. Still, he received no response. He was beginning to think this was all a waste of time when he heard footsteps behind him. He turned around and faced Emily.

"Johnny?" said Emily.

A patch of wetness was on her shirt, evidence she had been crying. "Hey..." he started and then scolded himself. What sort of greeting was that?

Emily looked around nervously as if searching for an escape route. She didn't want to be anywhere near him, but he had come looking for her. Did he mean to apologize? Or did he intend to continue what he started? "Are you going to insult me again?" she said meekly.

"I just wanted to... apologize," Johnny said, fidgeting uncomfortably. He hated being in situations where he was the troublemaker. It made him feel vulnerable. Emily looked at him expectantly. "I'm sorry for calling you ugly. I was just angry and it was the first thing that came to mind."

Emily crossed her arms over her chest, a confused expression on her face. "That's how you apologize to a woman?" The corners of her mouth tugged into a slow smile.

"What, you want me to grovel at your feet?" Johnny retorted. "I don't often apologize."

The grin on Emily's face widened. She was enjoying his torment. "I accept your apology. I guess you had a right to be angry having been thrown into this situation randomly." She shrugged her shoulders. "But you were harsh. I'm sorry I'm not a glamour girl."

"You're not ugly, err I mean..." A tinge of red appeared on Johnny's cheeks. This was becoming more awkward with each passing second. He glanced down at his feet.

"So, you think I'm attractive?"

"I didn't say that!"

She pouted. "So, you do think I'm ugly."

"I didn't say that either!"

"I'm just joking with you Johnny. I already told you your apology has been accepted."

Johnny glanced up from his feet. Emily was a cruel woman. "You are wicked girl Emily, and I mean that in a good way." She reminded him of him in almost every aspect. Prideful, sarcastic, and easily angered. A perfect match in heaven or in hell.

"Shall we return to our meals?"

Sitting back at the tables near a smirking Mystel didn't sound like a good idea. "Well, our food will be cold," he said, with a slight shrug of the shoulders. "Would you... err..." He glanced down at his feet awkwardly. He considered offering her a meal at his place when he realized he couldn't cook. That wouldn't be romantic at all. He cleared his throat. "I could always bully Oliver into giving us another meal?" That didn't help his case.

Emily pretended to be hurt. "I thought you were going to offer me a meal at your place for a second there," she said, "but I guess that would be too much to ask for from a guy such as yourself." She turned around, her back facing Johnny.

Johnny ran a hand through his hair and contemplated what to say next. If the other guys ever found out... it would ruin his 'tough-guy' image he projected. But did it really matter? The girl forgave him. Most other girls would simply slap him and chase after Enrique instead. She was special, and it would be a shame to lose her so quickly. "I've got an idea. We'll crash at Robert's place. He has the best butler around."

"You think that will be a good idea?"

"Would you prefer to have cold food?"

"You're clueless, aren't you?"

Johnny frowned. "What do you mean?"

Emily turned around and looked at him with such adoration Johnny felt concerned. "I took Julia's place to be with you Johnny. I forgave you for your insult when most girls wouldn't care." She stepped closer to him and touched his arm tenderly. "I don't care what the others think, and you shouldn't either."

"I don't understand..."

"You apologized to me when you could've left it alone."

The sudden change in her tone surprised him and he was feeling more awkward with each passing second. This was Enrique's territory; he was expert with women and feelings. "I saw how hurt you were, and I wanted to apologize..." Johnny mumbled.

"Was that your only motivation?"

She looked at him directly in the eyes, searching for answers. She knew guys like Johnny – the type of guy who kept his feelings bottled inside in fear of being weak by his friends. "If you didn't care about me at all, you would've just walked away."

He saw it in her eyes. Joy. Hurt. Anger. Love. Complex emotions, but they were raw feelings. No girl had ever looked at Enrique the same way. "You're the one I've always wished for," he said slowly, as if the words were foreign to him. A great feeling of relief overcame him. "I've wanted to say that for so long, but I was afraid..." Johnny admitted.

That was all she needed to hear. It was as close as she could get to hearing him confess that he had some feeling towards her. "That's all I needed to hear." It felt as if a heavy weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

She kissed him lightly on the cheek and pulled back just as quickly.

Johnny was overcome by surprise but overcame it. "I'm going to have to thank Robert..."

"You can do that later," Emily said, smiling. "We've got other things to do..." she winked.

Johnny grinned. The future was indeed bright.