AUTHOR'S NOTE: THANKS FOR TUNING BACK IN. I HOPE YOU DON'T HATE ME AFTER READING THIS CHAPTER. YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST! - KRISTINE.

RATING: PG

DISCLAIMER: UH, NO.

- J - & - L -

She woke up groggily to the tapping of Maxie's impossibly high stilettos. She groaned as she struggled to sit up. Their old couch, while comfortable for lounging had never been up to the job of being slept on. Slowly she grabbed her purse off of the comfy table and fumbled through it until she found her phone. She frowned when she saw that she didn't have a single missed call or message. Apparently he hadn't worried about where she decided to sleep last night.

"Any word from Dante?" Maxie asked as she daintily took a seat in one of the threadbare chairs that Robin had given her back when Lulu, Maxie, and Johnny were all living together. Like the couch they were worn enough that in anyone else's homes they would have made Maxie crinkle her nose in distaste, but because they were hers she couldn't help but appreciate them. "Let me guess he sent a long text message lecturing you about not coming home or letting him know where you were."

Lulu sighed and shook her head. "Actually he didn't say anything."

"Not even a missed call?"

"Nope," Lulu replied as she stuffed her phone back in her purse. She would be lying if she didn't say she was surprised. She had been expecting the long winded and belittling text message that Maxie predicted he'd sent. That was his style. Not bothering to even call was the kind of move that made her realize just how tattered their relationship was.

"Well," Maxie said but didn't comment further because for once in her life she was actually at a loss for words. She studied Lulu carefully trying to see how exactly her good friend seemed to feel about his lack of communication.

Lulu looked up and found Maxie staring at her. She rolled her eyes and demanded, "Stop staring at me."

"Excuse me for trying to figure out what you might need from me."

"I'm sorry Max I just I don't know. I can't decide if I'm pissed or hurt. I honestly just don't know." Lulu admitted softly suddenly feeling more exhausted than she had for the last few weeks. She let out a ragged breath, smiled, and shrugged. "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

"I know you will be," Maxie assured her. "That doesn't mean I still don't worry about you. Feel special we both know I'm only good at caring about a handful of people at one time."

Lulu smiled appreciatively before glancing down at the small silver watch that Carly had given her for Christmas two years before. It was only 8:00 which meant that if she rushed over she'd be able to catch Dante before he left for work. She reached down and slipped her heels back on. "Thank you for-" she started.

"You're always welcome," Maxie reminded her. "Make sure you let him have it and remember you're a Spencer. That means you have better things to do than take other people's shit Lulu."

Lulu smiled and hugged Maxie tightly.

"You're going to wrinkle my dress," Maxie said as she tried to extract herself from Lulu's surprisingly tight hold.

Lulu chuckled and finally let go. "Who'd have thought you were more than a bitchy girl that was good at putting together a good outfit. The Wizard did a good job when he decided to give you a heart."

- J - & - L -

She took a deep breath and braced herself for what she was positive was going to be a war before opening the front door to the apartment. She frowned when she realized that it was deathly quiet. He'd left. He hadn't even bothered to wait for her to come home. She sat down on the couch and let out a ragged breath that she recognized as the signal that she was on the verge of crying. A single tear had escaped her eye and the rest were on the verge of flowing free when the door to the apartment opened and he appeared carrying takeout and coffee.

"Hey," he greeted awkwardly.

"I thought you'd gone to work." She said as she tried to inconspicuously wipe her eyes in hopes that he wouldn't know that she had been on the verge of a sobfest.

He crossed the room and set the takeout on the coffee table before joining her on the couch though he made a point not to sit right beside her like he usually would have. "I called in and said that I would be late this morning."

She nodded but didn't say anything. She couldn't remember another time when they had been this awkward before. Normally they were one of those couples who were either really good or really bad. There was no in between for the two of them. This quiet discomfort was less appealing than either of the other two options.

"I got breakfast," he said motioning to the white containers before leaning forward to set everything out for them. "Did you stay at the Metro Court?"

"No with Maxie actually," she smiled and accepted the blueberry pancakes he'd bought her.

"Listen Lulu I'm sorry about the way I reacted last night. I just don't feel comfortable having you be friends with Johnny. He's dangerous and I'm fairly confident he's going to drag Michael down with him. I don't want to see that happen to another person I love." Dante explained. He'd practiced this speech several times the night before. He knew that he'd made the mistake of pushing her too far. Her love for him would allow her to only accept so much of his male chauvinistic behavior before he pushed her to the edge.

Lulu set her white container down and grabbed his hands forcing him to face her. "Johnny is an important part of how I became the girl you love. You need to understand that just like trying to issue an ultimatum to Michael didn't work it won't work for me either. I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself."

"I understand that Lulu I just worry about you. You know how much I hated the fact that my mother dated him. He constantly put her in more danger than she should have ever been in."

Lulu fought the urge to remind him that his mother's mouth and past relationship with Sonny hadn't helped her either.

"I love you Lulu. I want us to work. I want us to have forever. I need to know now if that's what you want too."

"Of course," she assured him even though to be honest she didn't know. She was filled with doubt. Still she'd been around the block enough times to understand that she couldn't let a little down force her to make rash decisions.

"Then please stop spending time with Johnny Zacchara," Dante pleaded.

She wished that she would have flown off the handle at the request. She wished that she had reminded him once again about his friendship with his past ex's despite their obvious interest in a less than platonic relationship. Instead she gulped, nodded, and allowed him to kiss her. When he pulled away and whispered into her ear all of the reason that he loved her and how lucky he was to be with her she couldn't help but notice that her heart felt heavy. It seemed she'd made the wrong decision. Maxie was going to be so upset with her.

"I don't have to be at work for another couple of hours. Want to catch up a little?" He suggested seductively.

She smiled weakly knowing that the obvious answer should have been yes. Instead she lied, "I have a meeting with the staff in a half an hour or I would."

"Oh."

"Sorry babe," she said before standing up and going to the bathroom to take a quick shower and wash off the stress of yesterday. She knew she had a lot of thinking to do.

- J - & - L -

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I KNOW YOU WANTED HER TO CHEW HIM OUT. I HONESTLY DID TOO. HAHA. THE PROBLEM IS JUST FOR THIS STORY I COULDN'T HAVE THAT HAPPEN RIGHT YET. I WILL DO MY BEST TO UPDATE AGAIN SOON. THERE WILL BE MORE JOHNNY IN THE NEXT CHAPTER. IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D WANT TO SEE IN THE NEXT CHAPTER? YOU GUYS USUALLY HAVE FAIRLY GOOD SUGGESTIONS. ARE THERE ANY OTHER CHARACTERS THAT YOU'D LIKE TO SEE BROUGHT ON THE SCENE? THANKS AGAIN FOR TUNING IN! - KRISTINE.