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Mike sighed for the hundredth time, "You know you don't have to do this today. We can do it tomorrow."
"Zoey, I have to. She deserves some closure."
Zoey's smile lights up her pale features as she kisses Mike on the cheek. "I'm so very proud of you. You've come a long way, Mike. I love you. Now go get her."
Mike struggles to breath. He feels a lump in his throat and his hands shake with unresolved anxiety.
Mike lets out the breath he had been holding for a while and knocks on the oak door. When the door opens, he gasps.
"Vito? Is it really you?"
"Anne Maria, I think it's about time we had a long, overdue talk."
Anne Maria smiles flirtatiously, and grabs Mike's arm, pulling the poor tanned teen into her house.
"I knew ya would leave her for me. I always knew you were into classy girls and-"
"Anne Maria, I'm not Vito. If you remember correctly, my name is MIKE. My full name is Michael Antonio Smith. Vito doesn't exist."
The orange skinned girl bursts into a fit of laughter. "I see, playing hard to get are we? Just let me take off that pesky shirt and-!"
Before the tanned girl could sink her claws into his shirt, he gets away and tries to stay away, much to her annoyance. Anne Maria tries to get the shirt even more, before Mike aggressively takes her by the wrist.
"Will you just listen to me?! Is it so hard?" Mike says with a slight edge to his voice. She is immediately taken aback by the sadness in his tone before she sits down next to him.
"Sorry, when my anxiety gets really bad, I kind of lash out. My trauma makes this so much more difficult than it should be," he rambles. Anne Maria eyes him suspiciously before taking a deep breath.
"Let me get this straight? You came here ta talk ta me, not hang out? Is this an alternate university or somethin'?"
Mike fidgeted with a loose string on his jeans. How could he explain his situation to her without being completely unnecessary? The dark haired teen cleared his throat and sighed.
"Anne Maria, there is something about me and Vito you should know." This got her attention. She stared at him with a confused expression before Mike's lips quivered.
"You remember our time on Revenge of the Island, right?" Anne Maria nodded. "Remember when Vito first showed up during the Capture the Flag challenge?"
"Yeah, I thought it was kinda hot. I still think you are only pretending to be this Mike person to play hard to get, Vito."
Mike cringed at the name. "I'm not playing hard to get. Neither is Vito. He simply doesn't exist anymore. That part of me died three months ago."
It was her turn to get confused. "Whatcha talking about? You're right here?"
Mike tried to steel his nerves, but only ended up choking. "There's something about me you should know. Anne Maria, I have a mental illness," Anne Maria looked taken aback.
"So you're saying you're crazy?"
Mike gave her a frightened look. "No, I'm not! Look, this means something else. I'm not crazy. Vito is a byproduct of my condition. He was created to protect me from abuse as a child,"
The sitting beside him frowned. "So Vito is all in your head?" Mike nodded. "Sounds crazy to me. I mean, why pretend to be different? You wasted my time and Miss Goody-Goody's."
"It wasn't on purpose! It's part of my condition! Anne Maria, I have what is called dissociative identity disorder. I have, or rather had, different identities within my head. Vito is one of those identities. I created him to be tough and macho, unlike myself. He got it all. The only drawback? My alternate identities rebelled and tried to do their own thing. Vito took an interest in you. I'm sorry if it feels slimy. I tried to break things off because I, as the host of the body, liked Zoey."
"So, let me get this straight. You believe you have other people living in your head?" Anne Maria asked. Mike nodded his head, "Do you not understand just how crazy that sounds?"
"I know it does, but it isn't! My alters helped me a lot with situations I couldn't deal with! I'm not crazy, I swear."
Anne Maria shook her head in disbelief. "I dunno man, that sounds pretty loony to me," the tanned woman got up and walked into the kitchen. Mike got up and followed her.
"Anne Maria, you don't have to believe it. Hell, I wouldn't, either if I were in your shoes! But I only came here to give you some closure. My alters integrated after All Stars so I could defeat Mal, my persecutor. Vito was among them. If I could get them back, I would. I would let Vito tell you himself, even. But I can't. They are all gone. Svetlana, Chester, Manitoba Smith, Vito, even Mal," Mike trailed off rambling. Anne Maria gave him a sympathetic look.
"This seems so elaborate for a simple break up," Anne Maria grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and scribbled something before she handed it to Mike. The tanned boy took it with slight confusion and saw the seemingly random set of numbers.
"Here's my phone number. If miss goody goody doesn't do her job, then give me a call. Even if you are nerdy, you're still a hot nerd." Heat pooled in Mike's face. Anne Maria gave him a seductive wink.
"Thanks for understanding Anne Maria." As Mike went to leave, she stopped him.
"Before you go, let me give you something else." She grabbed Mike by the face and planted the biggest kiss on his lips, startling him. Mike's eyes kind of bulged and before he knew it, he subconsciously grabbed her waist, deepening the kiss. It was only his desire to breathe that snapped him out of his trance. When he realized what he had done, his whole body froze in shock.
"Remember, you still have a friend in me. Maybe even something more. Goodbye, Mike."
Mike snapped out of it when she said his name. "Um, y-yeah… " Mike went to the front door and left. Outside, Zoey was waiting inside the car. Mike must have been in a state of shock, because Zoey giggled.
"So, how did it go?"
Mike turned his head around to meet Zoey's chocolate brown orbs. "Well, I explained everything and she told me that I still had a friend. She even gave me her number," Mike said sheepishly. Zoey nodded, before giving a mischievous smirk.
"Is that why you still have lipstick on your lips?"