Title: Who's the Sociopath?
Rating: T (it might be M later, whatever people want). The rating is based on vulgarity.
Author's note: This is my first Twisted fanfic. I'm obviously a big fan of Dacey aka Danny and Lacey (you'd know if you saw my tumblr page). With that said, I'm not going to be attacking Jo or make Lacey a Mary-Sue aka the perfect girl. I hope that I fleshed out Lacey's character a bit more and made her more relatable/easier to understand. Please, if you liked it or hated it write a review! Reviews make me super happy. :] Also, if there are terms that don't make sense, feel free to ask. My major is in psychology so I love adding concepts into my writing style (yay for using the degree for something!). Enjoy!
2nd Note: This fic will have multiple perspectives. It won't just be narrated through Lacey's eyes.
"A sociopath can be defined by the following traits," Mrs. Fisk stated as she handed out a stack of generic print outs. "Lacey, can you read the first three, please." Her eyes skimmed the list before her lips muttered a sound. "Lacey?" The teacher looked at her and smiled.
The corner of her lips pulled upward into a small smile. "A disregard for right and wrong. persistent lying or deceit to exploit others, and using charm or wit to manipulate others for personal gain or for sheer personal pleasure". The teacher must've been satisfied with her reading for she picked another….Stephanie Cole to say the next three. She tuned her out and the student that followed her.
Her eyes scanned across the room to rest on Danny's form. Her brown eyes followed the slow curve of his pen as he crudely drew upon the paper he probably knew fairly well. Separated by three columns and four rows of students, she had enough anonymity to stare at Danny, to think what she wanted, and to imagine what he wanted and what he thought. For instance, she imagined that he'd probably had several psychologists visit him while serving his five year sentence. They were all balding, with glasses, and generic names, who never smiled, and were almost too thin. They were Freud pretenders who were quick and eager to examine Danny, to see if he felt empathy or knew right from wrong. She imagined he'd say no just for the sake of being difficult. The pen ran across his paper in one long angle as if he was crossing out something. Someone behind her must've saw the action too for she said, "Looks like Socio already knows the material, Mrs. Fisk". The class laughed, except for Danny, Jo, and herself. For her part though she smiled when others looked at her in amusement.
"Let's be mature class, really. Now, can anyone tell me how you define egocentrism? For instance, what separates the jocks from a sociopath?" She scanned the room as her boyfriend shifted in his seat. He probably doesn't know what that means, and doesn't want to get called on.
"Archie?"
She heard him say fuck under his breathe.
"What was that?"
"Luck, ma'am."
The teacher quirked an eyebrow, her arms crossing over her chest. "What does luck have to do with my question?"
"Well…" She looked over at Archie, watched as he looked frantically at the paper as if it held clues and then at her. She smiled and mouthed the word caring.
"We're lucky to care ma'am." He said in a tone laden with confusion and cockiness.
"What?" The teacher scrunched her eyebrows together as a few students, including Danny turned over their shoulders to look at Archie, causing him to shrink in his chair.
Her eyes met Danny's and she felt the need to swallow the lump that was now in her throat. Was she breathing? Her hand shot up into the air to avoid focusing on his eyes, his nose, that mouth.
"Ms. Porter."
"A sociopath is unable to care about other people. He—"
"It can be a woman as well, Lacey. It's not just restricted to m-"
"Yeah..okay." She nodded. "Anyways, they care only about their own interests and nothing about anyone else's. They'll help people only when it suits them and if someone else's reputation is at risk, it doesn't affect their ability to make a decision."
"Very good, Lacey." Her mind told her to look across the room, to see if he was looking at her, but she willed herself to look at the back of Todd's head in front of her. The bell rung and her hands raced to stuff the paper in her binder so she could avoid him…avoid them.
"Alright class. Class!" There was too much noise for her to be heard, students opened and closed the rings of their binders, papers were being shuffled through, backpacks were being unzipped, while a few students took the time to catch up with their friends. "CLAAASSSSSS!" Mrs. Fisk yelled louder until everyone became quiet. "For homework, I want you to include examples of behavior that relate to the characteristics on the handout. " The class let out an aww in unison. "You can write behaviors you've seen your peers exhibit or use historical people as evidence. We'll talk about it on Friday. Have a great day."
She slung her backpack over her right shoulder and gave a half-assed excuse to Archie when he told her to wait up. Her feet moved quickly, weaving in and out of the crowds in the hallway, but that didn't stop her name from being yelled out behind her.
"Lacey!"
She looked at the lockers down the hall. Should she try and open her locker to change books now so that after lunch she could head to Mr. Peterson's class or should she just keep her psych book with her to make it to the cafeteria faster? If she could just make it to the cafeteria he should leave her alone.
She felt herself being pulled, a hand on her shoulder forcing her to turn around.
"I was calling you." He said. His face neutral.
She shrugged her shoulders slightly. "I didn't hear you."
"So, you're still avoiding me?"
Her eyes searched Danny's face, trying to figure out what she liked most. His hair that always seemed perfect and smooth, his bedroom eyes, his jawline, his lips…. She looked down at her shoes. She wanted to tell him, "Not here, Not now. Not in public!" But no words needed to be exchanged, he got the hint.
"I see, so I'm only allowed to talk to you when it suits you. When no one can see us and judge you." He scanned her face and she betrayed nothing. He shrugged his shoulders, and walked off in the other direction. She looked at her hands now clinging to the inside of her pockets. Had they not been imprisoned, she probably would've reached out to Danny. She let out a shaky breathe and moved towards the cafeteria.
Her fork poked at something that looked like cheese, but didn't taste or smell like it. It was probably made in some lab. She imagined asking Jo that question and them laughing at Danny as he mocked a scientist giving a speech on how he invented this new alien dairy product. She laughed aloud at the image only to have Sarita ask her what was so funny. She looked at Archie and Todd across from her, both now silent as they looked at her. They must've stopped talking about that new Grand Theft Auto game for the PS4 when they heard her laugh since they patiently waited for her answer. "I was just thinking of what Regina did this one time." She didn't need to explain for they went back to their conversation after a fake, but mandatory compassionate nod of the head. Regina, it seemed was a life saver even in death.
"So what are you going to wear for Fall homecoming!" Sarita looked up at her eagerly.
She bit her bottom lip. "I don't know."
"Great! We can start looking at catalogues. Do you want to come over after 4th period?"
"No, I have to do my psych homework." She looked for Jo, knowing she'd be by Danny. Though he was facing her, he didn't look at her and she pretended that the pain she felt was the cause of eating such shitty school food.
"Lace…that homework isn't due till Friday. Plus, just write Socio's name for all of the traits." Archie said, his hand grabbing some of the fries from her tray. She ignored it.
"I have a lot of homework this week. If I don't finish, I can't go to your soccer game tomorrow. Unless you don't want me to come?" Hook, Line, and Sinker.
"No. I do! Why do you think I try so hard."
"So you can be the next David Beckham."
"Yeah, that too!"
Lunch came and went as fast as it possibly could. She meandered around people, trying to find Danny, to tell him something, anything. But there were too many people around and he and Jo were too busy laughing at something...probably her. She pushed the thought out of her head. The world didn't revolve around her.
4th period History went well enough. None of her immediate friends were there or Jo or Danny. She just had strangers that knew her name and smiled at her, but never asked her what she thought or wanted. They let her be and it was…comfortable.
She thought about the envelope that was sent to Regina. About the hidden bribe and death threat all wrapped into one. Why didn't she take it to Jo's father, Sheriff Masterson? She knew that if he saw it, he would have to expand the suspect pool. He couldn't ignore what could be connected to her best friend's death for the sake of a personal vendetta against Danny, and yet, if she did that she'd only make herself a pariah, an outcast of the school and the community. Besides crushing Regina's mother further by manipulating her trust and devaluing her emotions and stake in the case, she would have to deal with everyone at her school. They'd probably ask, "Wow. If Regina was her best friend, would she screw us over too to help Socio? Why would she even help that freak unless she helped him kill Regina." Everyone would abandon her quicker than her father did, leaving her with no one to talk to. At least Jo had that kid—What was his name? Nico? And now she has Danny. No, if she was connected to helping Danny or being seen with him, she'd be a target and she couldn't reinvent herself to survive like she did the weeks after Danny was sent away.
Hours later, she laid on her bed, her right hand grasping the pencil over that handout with space enough to write something, anything.
She imagined what some, if not most of her classmates would write under "Hostility, significant irritability, agitation, impulsiveness, aggression or violence" and "Unnecessary risk-taking or dangerous behavior." They'd write Danny Desai's name or his forced nickname, Socio.
But if he was the definition of sociopath, then what was she? She's manipulated others feelings and thoughts by agreeing with whatever they've said, mimicked what they thought and what they felt as a means to escape being the scapegoat, from being alone. If Danny was one side of the sociopathic coin, then she had to be the other. And, what the hell was up with high school?! With its demands to be "in" at all costs, to be us vs. them. She pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance, her right hand dragging the pencil across the words in fury. She sighed, looking for an eraser to get rid of the markings she just made.
Her eyes looked at her digital clock and then at her car keys on the night stand. She grabbed them, put on her boots, and headed for the garage.
When she got there, she didn't know how to proceed. Her eyes scanned inside. She saw mostly older patrons inside, enjoying a slice of apple pie or a sundae. In the back, with its more dimly lit atmosphere, she could see that boy…Nero or whatever and Jo, him glancing down at an open book, and her at her cell phone.
"What are you doing here?"
Her heart sped up as she heard his voice. She turned around. The lump was back in her throat again and her hands naturally found their way back into her pocket. "Hey," she said lamely.
"Hey?" He looked at her, his head shaking slightly. "Unbelievable. You've avoided me ever since the Fall Festival. You'll only be seen with me here, with Jo, where you can talk to her and around me." It looked like he was going to say more, but he moved passed her, his hand resting on the door handle. Her hand did what it couldn't in the hallway earlier. It reached out and grasped his hand.
"I—" her throat felt dry, as if it was closing in. That feeling she had of not being able to breathe returned and she looked down again.
"I don't like games, Lacey," he said looking at her, his eyes emoting something she couldn't read.
"But games are all I know," she said. She wanted him to understand. She didn't phrase it right. She could've said it better. Why didn't she say she was sick of pretending to fit in? Why didn't she hug him to tell him she was sorry?
He just stared at her, not moving away nor closer. Jo must've saw them for she poked her head outside.
"What's taking so long. Come on, Danny. " She looked at her and smiled, though grudgingly. "Lacey, are you coming?"
She looked at Danny, but he already made his way inside.
She thought about that stupid piece of paper, the other homework she had to do, Archie's game tomorrow, Regina's letter, Danny as a suspect, the night of the Fall Festival.
"Yeah…" she put on a smile that she was used to giving even when she knew it was an empty one and followed Jo and Danny inside.
Her fingers rubbed against the letter, hoping she was doing the right thing, trusting the right person...
To Be Continued…?
So let me know if you want this to be a chaptered fic. I have a problem with finishing stories so yeah let me know by reviewing if you want more and I'll work on other chapters. This won't be just a Lacey P.O.V fic either. Chapter 2 (if there will be one) would be Danny's chapter and, the story might include Jo's perspective or Rico's or the Sheriff's whatever the masses want. I hope you enjoyed it. Yes, I'll get into juicy awesome Dacey moments if you want more chapters!