Chapter 1D

Boston – Parker Apartment – 4:45 am

Liz fumbled around her bag in search of her keys, while she held two letters from the mailbox between her teeth. Where the hell are you? she thought, frustrated when she didn't find what she was looking for.

With a frown she let go of her bag and brushed her hands over her jacket, sighing when she suddenly felt something hard in one of the pockets. She pulled the keys out and unlocked the heavy door, shoving it open with her foot to slip inside.

The corridor of the apartment felt warm compared to the low temperatures outside. She didn't bother to switch the light on, knowing every angle of these four walls since she had grown up here. Her feet hurt like crazy from the ridiculous high pumps Tess had loaned her for the New Years party. She kicked the right one off, continuing the same act with the left when she stumbled over her own feet. "Fuck," she muttered when she almost lost her balance, making the letters fall to the ground. Again Liz tried to get rid of the other shoe, using the help of both of her hands when it just wouldn't slip off. "Come on," her voice could be heard in the dark hallway, followed by a shattering sound when one of her hands reached out to steady herself on the dresser but had found the vase on it instead.

Wincing at the loud sound, she sighed and finally decided it was better to switch the light on before she could hurt her now finally bare feet on the broken fragments. Mom's gonna kill me, she thought when she realized it had been the huge white vase, which her mother loved so much. "Maybe there's something to save," she muttered to herself and crouched down to pick up the shards. Thank God, it only broke in three pieces, so maybe she could glue it again.

After cleaning up the mess, she walked through the hallway on her tiptoes, feeling just a bit ridiculous after the noise she had made. Her hand wrapped around the doorknob of her mother's bedroom and she opened the door quietly to glance inside. "Did I wake you up?" she asked in a whisper when she saw the figure in the bed shifting when a bit of light fell into the room.

Lucy Parker squeezed her eyes against the light from the hallway. "Are you drunk?"

"What? No!" The girl walked further into the room, leaving the door open just with a small gap. "I just lost balance when I tried to get these damn shoes off."

Her mother chuckled, knowing that Liz wasn't a person who drank much or acted unreasonable or irresponsible. "I was up before, so don't worry."

"Are you feeling okay?" Liz frowned and crawled up on the empty side of the bed, leaning in to kiss her mother's cheek. "Happy New Year, Mom."

"Happy New Year to you too." Lucy smiled at her, wondering when she had gotten to be such a beautiful woman. "I'm okay, the noise from the street kept me up."

"Okay," Liz nodded in relief, thankful that her mother's condition hadn't gotten worse lately.

"So tell me about all the cute guys who got their heads turned by you tonight."

The young woman snorted. "Oh please, Mom," she got more comfortable on the bed, resting her back against the headboard. "You know there are just bloats at Tess' party. They think they are all something better with all the money they have and the cars they drive."

"They can't be all that bad."

"Huh-uh, they are Mom, believe me! One of 'em asked me to go to Paris with him… like immediately tonight. There is no one who really wants to get to know you, it's just all about fashion and looks."

Lucy chuckled. "And what does Tess say to this?" The girls were as different as they could be, but somehow they got along and managed to keep their friendship alive.

"You know her, she puts it off. But the fact that she hasn't has a boyfriend for a long time now just shows that she thinks the same. I think she's pretty fed up with the upper class she's living in as well."

"What about Maria? I haven't seen her in a while." Lucy turned to grab the glass of water from her nightstand, taking a small sip when her mouth felt too dry.

"She's pretty down at the moment. Tess and I try to make her feel better, but it's getting harder. Michael hasn't contacted her since November and it's bothering her a lot."

"I cam imagine," her mother nodded sympathetically.

Liz looked out the window for a moment in silence. "Sometimes I really wonder if she shouldn't finally end this, ya know? But I'm scared to suggest it because I know she would hate me for saying it." She looked back at her mother. "It's just…. She is hurting the whole year and there are maybe 5 happy days for them and 360 bad. What's the point in staying together like this?"

"It's something only they can answer, Lizzie. If you really honestly love each other, you don't give the other one up and visa versa. "

"Would you have stayed with Dad this way?" she whispered. "I mean, with different circumstances and all…"

"No doubt," Lucy nodded and smiled sadly and the memory of her dead husband. "I couldn't have given your father up, no matter what."

Liz stayed silent and just nodded, trying to imagine how it would be to miss the man you love more than you really can be with him.

"One day some pretty boy will get in there," Lucy pointed at her daughter's heart with a smirk. "And then you will know what I mean."

She hadn't been in love. Never. Maybe her expectations were just too high or maybe the circumstances in her life hadn't let her yet. Either way, she was longing for someone who cared enough to stay despite the circumstances she was living in. Her mind immediately flashed to HIM - the nameless man she had been talking to for quite a while now. Was it stupid to see something in a person she hadn't even met before? Oh yeah, she thought bitterly, it was stupid just like Tess had said.

Lucy's eyes were slowly falling closed every now and then and Liz leaned in to kiss her cheek again. "Good night, Mom." She crawled off of the bed again and walked out of the room as quietly as possible to go to her own four walls.

She crossed in darkness and just switched on the small lamp on her nightstand. It took almost two seconds until the old thing managed to illuminate the small room. "What a mess," she mumbled when she saw how she had left it earlier this evening. Clothes were spread all over the bed and floor and makeup was spilled on the carpet in front of the huge mirror on the wall. With a quick move she managed to grab most of the clothes on the bed and instead of putting them back in the closet like normal she just threw them to the floor.

Her laptop was suddenly exposed when the dresses were gone and she frowned when she saw it was still turned on. Must have forgotten it earlier, she thought and was about to shut it down when she saw the small blinking envelope in the right corner of the display. She couldn't help the small twist her stomach made when she opened the message up and read it.

E-X-A-M: Hey party-girl, got home safe?

She leaned over the bed slightly without sitting down and typed in a quick message as well.

BostonGirl: Just got back home. Still in one piece.

Liz turned to her desk again and pulled the zipper of her dress down to step out of it, throwing it over the backrest of the chair in front of it. She reached for her night shirt on the floor and pulled it over her head. The soft fabric fell over her upper body and ended high on her slim thighs. He's probably already in bed by now, she thought when he didn't reply immediately and went to the small bathroom, which was connected to hers and her mother's room.

She came back to her room after brushing her teeth and getting rid of the makeup on her face. Her feet still hurt from the shoes and there were even tiny red spots on her toes – I am never gonna wear those high heels again, she swore to herself.

With a loud sigh she fell on her bed, glad for the soft mattress under her. It had been a long night full of drinks, loud music and drama. Okay, it hadn't been too bad in the end, but she would never tell Tess… she would get an ego-boost out of it and then she would hear the I-told-you-so hymn for at least a week.

A quiet bubbling sound announced a new arriving message and she turned her laptop towards her in surprise.

E-X-A-M: WOW, must have been a helluva party if ya still up by now.

BostonGirl: I wish. Main reason I stayed so long was because of my friend's sad mood.

E-X-A-M: The one with the boyfriend who's never there?

BostonGirl: Yep. Oh, Happy New Year, by the way. ;)

E-X-A-M: Lol, thanks. But we did say that before…. Remember? When you were on your phone, complaining about rich people and some jerk who invited you to Paris. *snort*

BostonGirl: OH, right! Sorry, I totally forgot about it was already after midnight. How was your party?

E-X-A-M: As boring as expected. There is really nothing to mention… soooo not worth one word.

BostonGirl: Ah come on, there must have been at least a few ok-people to hang out with?

E-X-A-M: Not really.

Why did he always avoid talking about stuff he had done? she wondered. He knew so much about her… her friends… her family situation… but she knew absolutely nothing about him. Tess' words came back to her mind and she bit her lip while she considered what to write next.

E-X-A-M: You must be tired, huh? You should sleep, Liz.

BostonGirl: Can I ask you something?

She had to find out more about him, either that or he really was a psycho like Tess had suggested.

His answer took longer than normal, but it came before she could write something else.

E-X-A-M: Sure.

BostonGirl: What's your real name?

Nothing.

BostonGirl: I mean, you know mine so it's only fair that you tell me yours, right?

E-X-A-M: William.

E-X-A-M: Stupid, huh?

BostonGirl: It's not stupid!

BostonGirl: Just a bit old fashioned. LOL

E-X-A-M: Well, thanks!

BostonGirl: Ah, come on! … Can I call you Willi?

E-X-A-M: :O

Liz giggled slightly. Okay well the name was not really modern, but who cared? At least now she had a name.

BostonGirl: I'll call you just W. Tess likes to call people by their first initial, so I'm gonna do that with you now.

E-X-A-M: Thought you didn't agree with the way she addresses people, ;), L.

BostonGirl: Alright, back to Willi then.

E-X-A-M: *sigh*

Liz thought about asking him some other private thing, but what? His profile page said he lived in Washington and was 20.

E-X-A-M: I need to leave, sorry. Meet me tonight?

She frowned when he had to go all of a sudden. What could someone do at this time of the day? Hmm, well in case he really lived in Washington. Or he could live in a totally different time zone….

BostonGirl: Ok

E-X-A-M: Sorry.

BostonGirl: Nothing to be sorry about. Good night, Willi. ;)

E-X-A-M: Grrrr. Alright, ya know payback's a bitch! Good night for now, browny.

She rolled her eyes at the nickname he had given her after he had seen the picture of her with long brown hair that was online at the university hotline. Another thing he knew more about her, she realized. While he had already seen a photo of her, she didn't even know the color of his hair or eyes.

Liz shut her laptop down and placed it aside before she got comfortable in her bed. She stretched her arm out as much as possible to reach the small lamp on her nightstand. With a small clicking sound the light was switched off, leaving her and her thoughts in complete darkness.