I do not own the Duff or Austin and Ally

Enjoy

Well you can tell everybody
Yeah you can tell everybody
Go ahead and tell everybody
I'm the man, I'm the man, I'm the man
Yes I am, yes I am, yes I am
I'm the man, I'm the man, I'm the man

That is the first thing I hear when I wake up. What the hell is that? I opened my eyes briefly to see that it is Austin's phone alarm. Of course Austin would have that song programmed to wake him up; I normally love that song but could he have picked a more narcissistic song to have set as his alarm?

When I try to move I can't and I soon realize that one of Austin's arms is tightly wrapped around my waist and I am using the other as a pillow for my head. How did that happen? I'm pretty sure when we fell asleep last night we were on opposite sides of his bed. I even threatened him to keep his hands to himself, so how did we end up cuddled up to each other. And why did I not hate It.?

Next thing I know Austin removes his arm from my head and rolls over to silence his obnoxious alarm. I silently pout at the loss of warmth not only from the lack of body temperature but also from him taking most of the sheets with him. Asshole! After he shuts his alarm off he sits up, stretches his arms and yawns. I couldn't help but notice his body, my eyes traveled down from his perfectly messy bedhead to his perfect abs and even lower. I guess it's true what they say about boys and the morning. Unfortunately he catches me ogling

"Like what you see?" he says with a smirk

"No!" I say half embarrassed he caught me and half insulted at his cockiness

"Sure you don't" he says sarcastically

Steam was coming out of my ears now "You know what Austin I hate you, you can go and take you cocky attitude and shove it right up-"

I was interrupted by him crashing his lips onto mine. I always hated when he would kiss me just shut me up. I hated even more that it always worked. My hands were in his hair while his traveled lower to grip my waist. His tongue licked the bottom of my lip, asking for permission which I more than willingly gave. Right when things look like they were going to progress to something we both wanted, my phone started ringing

"Damnit" I say pulling away from him. He had a smug smirk on his face, clearly proud of himself and what he can do to me. I wanted nothing more than to smack his dumb gorgeous face

I hesitantly reached over and picked my cell phone up off the nightstand, glancing at the time before I answered.

7:10.

"Hello?" I say not even trying to hide my bitterness from whoever just cock blocked me

"Sorry to wake you up, honey," Mom said through the speaker. "I didn't wake Trish up too, did I?"

"Mm-mm. You're fine. What's up?"

"I left the house about two hours ago," she said. "Your dad and I had a long talk, but… he didn't handle it very well, Ally. I knew he wouldn't. Anyway, I've just been driving around since then, trying to figure out what to do next. I've decided to check into a hotel in Miami for a few days so that I can spend more time with you, and this weekend I'm gonna start moving down to Orlando. Your granddad needs someone to look after him. It'll be a nice place to settle down and it's not too far from you. Don't you think?"

"Sure," I murmured, not completely invested in the conversation due to Austin nibbling at my ear and placing kisses down my neck. What is it with him and distracting me during phone calls?

"I'm sorry," Mom said. "I should have told you all this later. Go back to sleep. Call me when you get out of school, and I'll tell you which hotel I'm in. Maybe we can go see a movie tonight?"

"Sounds good. Bye, Mom."

"Bye, baby."

I put my phone back on the nightstand and push Austin off me. "You have issues" I say

"The only issue I have is that I can't get enough of you" he says with his hand now behind his head

I roll my eyes but can't contain the blush I feel on my cheeks as I get out of bed.

"Where are you going?" Austin asked in a semi-sleepy voice.

"Home." I pulled on my jeans. "I've got to take a shower and get ready for school."

He pushed himself up on one elbow to look at me. His hair was still a mess, his blonde hair sticking up in different directions. "You can shower here," he offered. "I might even join you if you're lucky."

"No, thanks." I grabbed my jacket off the floor and slung it over my shoulders. "Will I wake your parents up if I go out the front door?"

"That would be difficult considering they're not here."

"They didn't come home last night?"

"They won't be home for a week," Austin said causally. "And who knows how long they'll stay then. A day. Maybe two."

Now that I thought about it, I'd never seen another car in the driveway. Austin always seemed to be the only one here when I came over-which was practically every other days. "Where are they?"

"I don't remember." He shrugged and rolled onto his back again. "Business trip. Hawaiian vacation. I can never keep up with them."

"Wait a minute don't you have a sister? What about her?"

"Amy stays with our grandmother when my parents are out of town," he said. "Which is essentially all the time."

Slowly I moved back to the bed. "So," I said quietly, sitting on the edge of the mattress. "Why don't you stay there, too? I bet your sister would like having you around."

"She might," Austin agreed. "My grandmother, however, is a different story. She hates me. She doesn't approve of my"-he made air quotes-"lifestyle. Apparently I'm a disgrace to the Moon name, and my father ought to be ashamed of me." His laugh was hollow and cold, clearly fake. "Because he and my mother are the staple of perfection, you know."

"How does your grandmother know about your, uh, lifestyle?"

"She hears the gossip from her friends. These grandmas who hear their granddaughters swooning over me-and who can blame them?-and then they tell my grandmother all about it. She might actually like me if I'd date a girl seriously for a while, but part of me just doesn't want to give her the satisfaction. I shouldn't have to change my life to suit her or anyone else."

"I understand what you mean." And I did. Because I'd had that same thought a million times over the years. Recently, it had even pertained to him. It would be easy to change Austin's opinion of me, to hang out with different people or bring another girl into my circle of friends, to avoid being the Duff. But why should I do anything just to fix what he or anyone else thought about me? I shouldn't have to.

And neither should he.

Somehow, though, his situation felt different. I glanced around the room, feeling stupid and guilty for even comparing it to the Duff issue. Then, without meaning to, I found myself asking, "But don't you get lonely? In this big house by yourself."

Oh my gosh. Was I actually feeling sorry for Austin? Austin the womanizer? Filthy-rich Austin? Austin the jackass? Of all the emotions I'd felt for him, sympathy had never come up. What was going on?

But if there was anything I could relate to, it was family drama. So it seemed like Austin and I had another thing in common. Ugh.

"You forget how rarely I'm alone." He pushed himself into a sitting position and looked at me with a smirk. It didn't touch his eyes, though. I could tell it was fake, it was kind of scary how good I was getting at reading him and knowing when he was honest."

I bit my lip, not sure if I should say what was on my mind. Finally, I decided I might as well throw it out there. It wouldn't do any harm, after all. "Listen, Austin, this may sound weird coming from me, since I hate you and all, but you can tell me stuff if you want." It sounded just as cheesy and corny as I thought it would. "I mean, I vented about Jack to you, so if you want to do the same,… well, I'm cool with that."

The smirk slipped for a second. "I'll keep that in mind." Then he cleared his throat and added stiffly, "Didn't you say that you needed to go home? We wouldn't want perfect Ally Dawson late for school now would we?"

"Right."

I started to stand, but his warm hand closed around my wrist. I turned around and found him looking at me. He leaned forward and pressed his lips against mine. Before I even realized what was happening, he pulled away and whispered, "Thank you, Ally."

"Um… no problem."

I didn't know what to make of it. Every other time Austin and I had kissed, it had been a fierce, warlike make-out. A lead-in to sex. He'd never kissed me in such a gentle, greedless way, and I don't know how I feel about it.

But I didn't have time to think about it as I ran down the stairs and through the foyer. Once I was in my car, I had to speed-which I really, really hate to do-all the way to my house, I only had an hour to shower, get dressed, and check on Dad before school started. What a fantastic way to start the morning.

Even better was the fact that I could tell the living room lights were on when I pulled into my driveway. Not a good sign. Dad always-always- turned out every light in the house before bed. He treated it like a ritual. The fact that he'd left them on was definitely a bad omen.

I heard the snoring as soon as I tiptoed inside and instantly knew he'd bought more beer. Even before I saw the bottles on the coffee table or his unconscious form on the couch, I knew.

He'd gotten drunk enough to pass out.

I started to move forward but stopped myself. As much as I might want to, I didn't have time to clean up Dad's mess. I needed to go upstairs. I needed to go to school. And as I crept up to my bedroom, I told myself that he would be fine. He was just shocked, it would be fine, and this… episode would pass without incident. I could hardly hold a few drinks against the guy, considering the bombshell Mom dropped on him, could I?

I took a quick shower and blow-dried my hair before putting on some fresh clothes. After I brushed my teeth, I headed downstairs again and went into the kitchen to grab an apple for the road. Then I took off, out the front door.

By the time I got to school, the student parking lot was almost full. I had to park in the very back row and jog-with my twenty-pound backpack-to the double doors. Of course that left me out of breath by the time I made it into the main hallway.

"Hey, where'd you go yesterday?" Cassidy asked when I slumped into my desk only seconds before the bell rang. "You weren't at lunch or in English. Trish and I were kind of worried."

"I left school early."

"I thought the three of us were gonna have a Valentine's Day thing to celebrate that we're all single."

"I'm sorry, Cassidy. Something came up yesterday. I'll tell you about it after school, okay?"

Before she could say anything, Mrs. Diaz cleared her throat and shouted, "Silencio! Buenos días, amigos. Today we're going to get started on the present progressive tense, and I'll warn you now that it's pretty darn difficult."

And it was. Mrs. Diaz passed out a worksheet that kept us all busy until the end of the block. By the time the bell rang, I was really starting to question my affection for Spanish class, and I wasn't alone.

"Is it too late to switch classes for the semester?" Kira asked Piper and me when we walked out of the classroom.

"About a month too late," I told her.

"Damn it."

"Bye, Ally!" Cassidy called as they ran toward their chemistry class. "See you at lunch!"

I waved and started walking down the other hallway. Today, though, I was actually looking forward to history. Dallas had asked me to sit near him. I wouldn't be the lonely girl in the back of the room anymore. I'd never thought that would change or that I would be so happy when it did. What can I say? The self-imposed isolation was finally beginning to bug me.

But Dallas wasn't there. His seat was completely, one hundred percent empty when I walked into the classroom, and my heart kind of sank a little bit… or, you know, a lot. At least I didn't have to sit alone. I wasn't the only one who missed Dallas, the teacher seemed to get bored with his own uninterrupted lecture, and he dismissed the class only halfheartedly when the bell rang, his lower lip sticking out like a toddler's.

And they say teachers don't play favorites.

I was relieved to be out of that classroom, until I got into the cafeteria.

The lunch table wasn't exactly a warm, loving environment that afternoon. Trish glared at me all through lunch, obviously pissed that I'd hung up on her the night before. But apparently not pissed enough to skip out on meeting Cassidy and me after school to hear my excuses.

I'd promised to explain things after class. Of course, that meant the second the last bell sounded, they dragged me into an empty bathroom and started making demands like "Spill!" and "Out with it!" It felt like I was on trial and Trish and Cassidy were judge and jury.

I groaned and slid down the cold concrete wall to land in a sitting position on the floor. I hugged my knees loosely and said, "Okay, okay. So Mom showed up here yesterday afternoon."

"Is she back from her research trip?" Cassidy asked.

"Not exactly. She just came to talk to me. She and Dad are getting a divorce."

Cassidy clapped a hand over her mouth in shock, and Trish knelt down beside me, her face now softened and took my hand. "You okay, Als?" she asked, abandoning her anger toward me.

"I'm fine," I said. I knew they'd be more upset about it than I , whose parents had gone through a long, bitter divorce, and Cassidy, who could never imagine something so upsetting and unhappy.

"Is that why you skipped out on Valentine's Day last night?" Cassidy asked.

"Yeah," I said. "Sorry. I just… didn't really feel like celebrating."

"You should have called," Trish said. "Or said something to me on the phone last night. I would have listened, you know."

"I know. But really, I'm fine. It was just a matter of time. I've been expecting it for a while now." I shrugged. "And, honestly, it doesn't really bother me. I mean, you know Mom hasn't been around much in the past few years, so it really won't change that much. But she's only in town a few days, she is moving down o Orlando soon, which is why I need to be going right now." I stood up.

"Where are you going?" Trish asked.

"I told Mom we'd see a movie together this afternoon." I grabbed my backpack and glanced at my reflection in the mirror. "Sorry. I know you guys want to talk about it or whatever, but Mom's leaving at the end of the week, so…"

"You sure you're okay?" Trish asked skeptically.

I hesitated, my hand raised to brush some Chestnut brown waves from my face. I could have told them then. I could have told them about Dad and the beer bottles and how confused I was. They were my best friends, after all. They cared about me.

But if I ratted Dad out, what would happen? What if word spread? What would people think of him then? I couldn't handle that. Even the thought of my best friends judging him made me uncomfortable. He was my dad, after all. And this was a small thing. He was just going through a rough patch. Nothing to worry about.

"Positive," I said, turning away from the mirror with a forced smile. "But I should get going. I don't want Mom to wait."

"Have fun," Cassidy murmured, her eyes still wide with innocent shock. Maybe I should have given her the news a little more gently.

I was almost out the bathroom door when Trish called after me. "Hey, Ally, wait a sec."

"Yeah?"

"Let's go out this weekend," she said. "To make up for not hanging out on Valentine's Day. We could all go to the Beat. A Girls' Night Out. It'll be fun. We'll even buy you ice cream."

"Sure. I'll call you later, but I really have to go."

With a wave, I ran out of the bathroom. Yeah, I did want to see a movie with Mom, but that wasn't the reason for my hurry. There was something else I had to do first.

Once I made it to my car, I wasted no time in pulling out my cell phone. I dialed the familiar number and waited for the professional male voice to answer.

"You've reached Sonic Boom this is Christian. How may I assist you?" Christian was a guy who my dad hired to help him at the store since business boomed.

I wanted to talk to Dad. To make sure he was okay and let him know we'd get through this. Just, you know, be supportive. I knew he needed it. After the night he'd had, I knew he must be having a horrible day at work. Besides, if I was dealing with the news so well, I could at least help pull him through it. "Hey Christian," I said. "Is my dad available?"

"I'm afraid not. Mr. Dawson didn't come in today. I had to open the store myself"

I sat there, stunned for a minute, knowing what that meant. But I shook off the worries creeping into my stomach. He was just having a bad hangover after a rough night. Probably more than enough to remind him why he'd quit drinking in the first place. He'd be fine tomorrow.

I hoped.

"Thank you, anyway," I said. "Have a nice day."

I hung up the phone and started to dial another number. This time a woman with a clear, chirpy voice answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Mom. Still want to go see a movie tonight?"

"Oh, hi, Ally!" Mom exclaimed. "Yeah, that sounds great. Listen, honey, have you talked to your dad today? Is he okay? He just got so upset last night, and he was crying when I left." By the way she spoke, I could tell she had no idea he'd relapsed, that he'd touched a bottle. If she did, her voice would have been much more strained, full of concern. Maybe even on the verge of panic. But she sounded calm. Only slightly worried. The fact that she was so blind really bothered me. I mean, he'd quit drinking almost eighteen years ago, but still. The thought should have crossed her mind.

But I didn't want to be the one to break the news to her.

"He's fine. I just got off the phone with him a second ago. He's going to be at work late tonight, so a movie works great for me."

"Oh, okay. I'm glad to hear that," Mom said. "What do you want to see? I don't even know what's in theaters right now."

"Me neither, but I was thinking a comedy would be good."

My life had enough drama

Good news and bad news. Good news: I am posting two chapters today. Bad news: I probably won't update again for a week or so. I'm going to be out of town for a bit and won't have access to my computer, but I hope these two chapters can hold you off.