Author's Note: So this is it. This is the beginning of the final part in the WIAA/PU saga. I hope you enjoy and one thing you must know, even though this is South of Nowhere and Spashley will be involved, this fic will follow Lucas and Dylan above it all. So... let me know what you think!
ONE | Under Fire
~*Spencer*~
"Seriously?" I stared at her for five minutes before she cracked her famous grin. "Ashley, she's going away to University in a month and you agreed that she's allowed to take a two week camping trip?"
Brown eyes sparkled. "Spence, she's eighteen years old. She can make her own decisions now."
"Not while she's under my roof." I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest. "Lucas needs to stay home because come next month, she'll be a thousand miles away!" I pouted.
"You would think you were the youngest out of all of us, Mom." Dylan snorted, throwing her tanned legs over the armrest on my recliner, a lollipop sticking out of her mouth.
"Who asked you?" I raised an eyebrow and she grinned.
"I think Dyl's got a point." Ashley nodded and gave our youngest daughter a high five.
"Okay!" Lucas ran down the stairs in a plaid skirt and a hoodie. "I can't find my sleeping bag, do you know where it is?"
"You might want to consider changing your clothes for camping Luc," Dylan peered over at her sister, eyeing up the skirt, "and hey! That's my skirt."
"Whatever, I was just trying it on. Chill. I'm not stupid, like I'd camp in skirts." Lucas rolled her grey eyes and then looked at me. "Mom, do you know where the sleeping bags are?"
I shook my head no but was elbowed in the stomach by Ashley. "Fine, in the garage."
"Was that so hard?" Lucas shook her head with a smirk, pulling her long blonde hair back in a ponytail. "I know you don't want me to go but Phillip and Josh are leaving for good and this is the last chance I'll get to hang out with them."
Phillip and Josh Monteith were identical twins and they befriended Lucas after she was drafted on their hockey team. The only team that had a female on it.
"As your mother pointed out, you're eighteen and can make your own decisions." I sighed.
"I'm eighteen in two years, can I have a head start?" Dylan stood up, throwing her magazine onto the coffee table.
"No." I said sternly and Ashley laughed at me. "Why are you not freaking out about this?"
"Because Lucas still has two weeks with us before she leaves. Plus we're going with her to check out the campus and she'll be back every holiday." Ashley softly smiled, her hand cupping the side of my face. "You worry too much Spence."
"I can make myself a handful if you want," Dylan smiled innocently.
"Yeah right." I glared at her. "You've already had more suspensions then your mom and I have ever had."
"I told you that the bathroom incident wasn't my fault." Her straight brown hair framed her face. "Momma, you believe me right?" She asked Ashley.
Such a Momma's girl.
"Dyl, when you were caught with two micro cameras in your locker, it's kind of hard to place the blame somewhere else." Ashley chuckled a little. "However, I know you'll be better this time around in school, right?"
"Yeah." Dylan rolled her eyes and made her way up to her bedroom.
"She has your attitude problem." Ashley eyed me up.
"Me?" I snorted. "Miniature Ashley does not have my attitude."
"Okay!" Lucas came back through the back door and clutched her sleeping bag under her arm. "Phil said it was supposed to storm tomorrow night. I think I should get a tarp."
"Luc, I'll grab you a tarp. Don't waste all your money that you worked hard for on this camping trip." I smiled and she grinned gratefully.
"Have I mentioned lately that you're my favourite parent?" Her arms wrapped around me and she kissed my cheek.
"Yeah, when you want something." I laughed and she shrugged, her grey eyes shining wildly. "You're really excited about this trip aren't you?"
"Well yea," Lucas shrugged and grabbed a cookie out of the jar, "two weeks without you two and I'll be in a tent with gorgeous twins."
"You're so lucky you're a flaming lesbian," Ashley jumped in, "you'd be in your room right now, locked up until you're fifty."
Lucas laughed. "It's a guys camping trip. No girls allowed and since I am a flaming lesbian, I happen to be an exception."
"Mason called, can I go to his place for dinner?" Dylan came back down the stairs with the phone clutched to her chest.
"Be home by eleven." Ashley pointed at her and Dylan nodded, smiling widely as she put the phone back to her ear and running back up the stairs.
"Don't be too hard on her while I'm gone?" Lucas raised an eyebrow. "She's taking it worse than you with me going away for school."
"Does she think we're going to be hard on her?" Ashley asked in concern.
Lucas laughed and wrapped one arm around each of our shoulders. "You really don't realize that I'm like a shield when it comes to you punishing her. Just, take it easy on Dylan okay? She's a fragile little thing."
"We're not that bad on her." I frowned and looked at Ashley. "Are we?"
"No, you're not." Lucas said honestly and threw herself in the chair and eyed us up like a protective big sister. "It's just the focus will be on her more now that I'm moving away. I know how it is being a big sister and honestly Mom, so should you." She clucked her tongue at me with a raised eyebrow. "Dyl is going to make mistakes and she's going to rebel but please just do your best at being patient."
Ashley nodded and ran a hand through her hair. "Well if she's going to be anything like me at that age, colour me worried."
"You weren't that bad." I nudged her and she gave me an 'are you kidding me?' look.
"Do you remember Beth?" Ashley hissed slightly. "Or my so-called friends back then? Before I met you, I wasn't exactly…" She hummed and searched for an appropriate word.
"Were you a player, Momma?" Lucas asked teasingly and waved her finger back and forth. "You're so bad."
"I had issues, I worked through them, I moved on." Ashley quickly responded and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Were you a player, Mom?" Lucas eyed me up a bit.
"No." I answered a little too quickly. "Not technically."
Ashley leaned forward and bit her bottom lip, watching me intently. "Care to elaborate?"
"I had a phase where I wasn't ready for commitments, especially after Katie." I shrugged and Lucas rolled her eyes at my ex-girlfriend's name. "So I had a few people in my contacts."
"Aimee was one of them, right?" Lucas grinned. "I knew it!"
"Anyway," I stressed, "It wasn't like I was using them, we had agreements and I was careful."
"Any guys on that list?" Ashley winked.
"No. Ew." I made a face.
Lucas laughed and stood up, looking at the time. "It's getting late, can we go pick up that tarp now?"
"Yeah." I kissed my wife before grabbing my purse and keys. "I'll swing by the school to pick Matthew up from band practice. Do we need anything from the store while I'm out?"
Ashley thought for a moment before leaning forward and whispering something in my ear. She pulled back and winked.
I swallowed and shook my head. "We can buy that when we don't have children shopping with us."
Lucas raised an eyebrow.
"What? It makes a great dessert topping." Ashley blinked innocently.
"Okay, ew. I'll be in the car." Lucas screeched and ran out of the house.
"I'll see you in a bit." I laughed and kissed Ashley gently. "See you at eleven Dylan!" I hollered up the stairs and I heard a quiet confirmation that I was heard.
~*Dylan*~
Lucas Evelyn Carlin-Davies was my sister. She protected me from day one and never allowed others to hurt me if she could help it. When she graduated from eighth grade and started her freshman year in Beaver Brae, I was left behind in Lakewood school. She was no longer there to help shield me but in a way, I guess I should be thankful. I was able to step out from her perfect shadow and become my own person.
My own person loved to rebel though. Something I don't think Lucas had expected of me.
Both of my parents knew about teenage rebellion and handled me and my punishments quite well. I was impressed how they handled that one time I was caught smoking in the girl's washroom. They grounded me and told me I wasn't allowed doing anything with my friends until I started showing my school, peers and teachers respect.
Mason Brown was one of my first friends I had made once Lucas went to a different school. He took me under his wing and I had spent many days after school at his place. Of course, his dimpled cheeks and deep brown eyes made me fall for him.
"So my parents will be out of town next weekend and I was hoping you'd want to come over and have a movie marathon with me." Mason grinned and squeezed my hand as we walked towards the nearest gas station so he could buy wrappers for his joints.
"I'll have to check in with my moms. With Lucas leaving for school in a month, Mom's pretty wound up." I shrugged a little and smiled up at him.
He chuckled and took a drag from his cigarette. "I don't think that should stop you from coming over."
"We'll see." I slid my hand into his back pocket and watched the butt of his cigarette land across the other side of the street. He opened the door for me at the gas station and winked.
"Mase!" Heath, one of our friends waved at him from behind the counter. "Hey Beautiful." He winked at me.
"Is your boss around?" Mason asked quietly as we approached the front counter.
Heath shook his head and looked at the clock. "You're cutting it close, bro. We close in fifteen."
"Yeah, sorry about that." Mason sent a smirk my way. "We were kind of busy."
I merely blushed and rolled my eyes. Mason had always made it sound like we engaged in sexual activities. Maybe we dabbled close to third base territory but I wasn't ready for anything more and so far, he seemed okay with that.
Heath nodded his chin toward me with a gleam in his eye that made me flip him off. "I'm grabbing a drink, want anything?"
"A pepsi, thanks babe." Mason kissed my cheek before I took off toward the back of the store. I could hear the guys whispering but decided to ignore them. My phone buzzed and I dug it out of my pocket, smiling at the text from my sister.
Be home on time Dyl. Moms will keep off your back if you can show that you're trustworthy.
I glanced at the time on my phone and hissed. I had thirty minutes to get back to Mason's before Mom picked me up. I sent a quick reply back stating not to worry and grabbed the drinks from the cooler.
"Dude, just because we're friends it doesn't mean you can try and rip me off. I have other people to answer to." I heard Heath whisper as rounded the corner.
"Come on, you know I'm not ripping you off. You know where I live. I just don't have the rest of the cash at this precise moment. I'll get it to you, I promise man." I stopped when I saw Mason hand cash over for a baggie of marijuana. I sighed heavily and made myself known, slamming the drinks up on the counter.
"You couldn't do this anywhere else?" I pointed up towards the security cameras. "The last thing I need is for my parents to ground me even more."
"Would you rather us do it at school where one of your moms work?" Heath quirked an eyebrow.
"How about when you go over to play video games?" I asked with a challenging eyebrow and put a five dollar bill on the counter. I grabbed the drinks and walked towards the exit.
"Wow dude, she's feisty as hell. That's hot." I heard Heath whisper before I felt Mason's arm around my shoulders once again while we exited the store.
"Okay, we need to go back to my place and light one up so you can chill out." He laughed. "It's just weed, Dylan. It's not like I'm doing anything hardcore."
"I can't have any tonight, Mase. My mom is coming to get me in less than a half hour."
"I can drive you home, it's not big deal. Call and ask if you can stay awhile longer and I'll have you home by midnight, I swear." He flashed me his dimpled smile and I couldn't help but nod, curling myself into his body as we walked back to his place.
—
~*Lucas*~
The frantic phone call I got from my sister was more than alarming when I noticed it was going on well after midnight. I had told my parents that they could go to bed and I'd wait up for Dylan and alert them if there were any problems.
When the clock hit quarter after eleven, I knew in my gut that Dylan wasn't getting a ride from her boyfriend as planned.
The phone call was a slurring Dylan to pick her up because she had no way of getting home. She ended up apologizing the whole ride home in a blubbering mess but managed to hold it together until I got her quietly into her room.
Whether we were busted or not, we wouldn't know until morning. Mom loved to punish us by with-holding coffee until she finished a long ranted lecture about how disrespectful we can be.
The following morning will no doubt be any different but at least I had my camping trip to look forward to.
"Eleven. That was your curfew, Dylan! You blew it once again with Moms." I hissed as I stuffed my sister's body into bed.
"But you saved me." Dylan sighed with a smile on her face. "You always save me."
I shook my head and took off her hoodie and pants before making sure she was tucked under the covers. "I won't be here much longer to save you, Dyl."
"Of course not. You're leaving me and you'll probably forget all about me." She pouted before clutching at her teddy bear.
"Somehow I know that is not the alcohol talking." I squinted at her in the dark and noticed the tears spilling out of her eyes. "Come on Dyl pickle," I whispered and scooted her over so I could fit into her bed, "it's just for school. You know I'll be home every holiday and in the summer."
"I know." Dylan sniffled and buried her head in my shirt.
I laid there until I knew she was sleeping before slipping out of her bedroom. When I turned around, there stood Momma with a hand on her hip and a raised eyebrow. "Hey." I sheepishly grinned.
"I don't want to hear any excuses from you, for her." She said firmly and ran a hand through her hair - something she always did when she was frustrated.
"Okay." I nodded and moved away from Dylan's bedroom door. "She got drunk and called me for a ride. I went and picked her up and just finished putting her to bed."
"You didn't wake us, Luc." Momma whispered, a deep frown on her face.
"Because I had it under control, Ma. If she were hurt or in an accident then I would've woken you up but she was just drunk and wanted to come home." I sighed and grabbed her hand. "Please don't lecture me. I was just taking care of my sister."
If it weren't a serious moment, I'd tease her about her height as I stood two inches taller than her. Momma teased me about my growth spurt as soon as I had hit fourteen. I was taller than all of the girls throughout high school.
But she was giving me a soft death glare, if that were possible.
"I'm her mother and she shouldn't be drinking in the first place." Momma hissed and took her hand back before shaking her head. "I'm sorry Lucas, I'm not mad at you." Her voice softened. "Your mom is not going to be happy about this."
"Why don't we both go to bed and deal with the outcome in the morning." I suggested reasonably and smiled when Momma agreed. She ushered me to my room before kissing me on the cheek.
"Thank you for taking care of your sister." She patted my shoulder and spun around towards her own bedroom.
The next morning I was woken up by Matthew, sitting on the edge of my bed with a goofy grin on his face. "Morning Lucas." He crawled under the covers and snuggled in beside me.
"Hey there, Matty." I ran my hands through his thick shaggy curls and pulled him tighter to me, giving him a squeeze. "What did I do to earn this wake up call?"
"Mom and Momma are downstairs scolding a very hungover Dylan. I didn't want to make an appearance yet so I thought I'd bug you instead." Matthew sighed and rolled onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. "It's going to be different without you around."
"I know." I sighed and sat up, running my hands through the tangles in my hair. "You're in good hands though." I grinned at him and he just smiled with a shrug.
Matthew and I had our differences when he first came to live with us. I wasn't jealous of him or anything, I was just being a moody pre-teen that wanted nothing to do with kids anymore. But his large green eyes and big grin grew on me and soon I had found excuses to babysit him so we could play together. That time allowed us to bound and I'd do anything for both of my siblings.
"Do you have to go?" He asked softly, sadness evident in his small voice.
"Yeah, I do." I replied with the same amount of emotion. "Look at it this way though Matty, you have one less person to compete with in getting attention from Moms."
Matthew laughed a little but then his face became serious once again. "I only want your attention, Lucas." He jumped slightly when there was a loud bang outside my room.
"Why did you tell Momma that I was drunk?!" Dylan came barging in the door, anger written all over her face.
I got out of bed and pulled my hair back, watching as Matthew took the opportunity to slip out the door. "Because you were drunk," I stated and heaved my camping bag up to make sure I had everything before I left for two weeks.
"Lucas!" She yelled at me and slammed my bedroom door, pressing her heaving body against it. "You're supposed to have my back. That's why I called you."
I spun around and just stared at her. "When have I never had your back, Dylan? When have I ever thrown you to the wolves and left you there. I've been doing nothing but have your back since day one. So don't you dare insinuate that I don't. I got you home safe." I started to pace, chucking things onto my bed in anger.
"You didn't have to say I was drunk!" She nearly stomped her foot. "I'm grounded for the better part of summer. I can't see Mason unless he comes here and we're supervised."
"Word of advice for next time?" I shook my head and tried to quell the oncoming headache I could feel advancing. "Don't drink and come home on time."
"Right." She huffed out in a laugh and flung the door open. "So basically just be an angel like little miss perfect Lucas Evelyn Carlin-Davies." Then she stopped and turned to face me. "Deep down, I'm kind of glad you're leaving for school. Saves me the pressure to be just like you." With that, my sister was slamming her bedroom door and I felt like my heart had just broke.
Even worse then the break-up I had with my ex-girlfriend Scarlette and that was rough.
All I could do was stare at the empty hallway before Mom appeared in front of me with a look of concern on her face. "Luc?"
I shook her off with a tight smile. "I'm fine. I need to shower and get ready to meet the twins."
It was the first time I had felt like going away was really going to destroy someone in my family and I had a fear that it might be me.
