Thank you for beta'ing, A Star in My Universe! Warning: dangerous & gross situations and thoughts & actions of self-harm.

"Do you mind seeing where Lorna is again, Maritza?" Diane asks. "I know you said last time, Lorna was in the locker room and screaming, but Nicky's got her now...so I'm concerned that they're both hurt."

"Sure." Maritza's about to get up from her seat, when Lorna unsteadily walks in, looking as if she'd been run over by a car or trampled by bulls. Everyone turns towards her and Diane gets a pain in her chest at how wounded she is.

"I'm so sorry for being tardy!" Lorna apologizes and Maritza starts to lead her further into the classroom. Diane goes up to her and rubs her back soothingly. "I'm real sore all over...I...I have to get a cast...on my forearm...but I...I can't just leave..." she stammers weakly. "Nicky wants to take me to the hospital..."

"It's okay...you should, it'll take longer to heal if you don't seek medical attention right away. I'll give you any missed work whenever you come over to see Alex or go to Friendly's."

"I appreciate that, Diane," Lorna whispers. "Thank you so much."

"You're very welcome." All of the students, except for Maritza, are snickering while showing each other their phones. Lorna stares down at her shoes and quickly leaves. Diane turns around to face her class. "Hey, what's so funny, guys?"

"Oh, just something we found on YouTube to occupy ourselves with while you were busy with her," Katrina Idismana answers, and a bunch of snickers escape from the kids around her. "My brother would find it hilarious!"

"Nice, let me see." Diane holds her hand out for Katrina's phone, but the girl throws it in her purse quickly. The other children follow suit. "What, is it something I wouldn't understand? I'm not that old, you know."

"Lorna's kind of a teacher's pet...and she walked right into that one! We're all aware that she and Maritza are your favorites! Watch out, though, Lorna's wacko!" Anthony Overwest says. "My sister would know, they were in a lot of classes together last year, but then she graduated."

Diane folds her arms across her chest. "I still don't know what you're talking about, but there is no gossiping or being rude about your fellow classmates, period, is that understood?" she asks sternly.

"Yes, ma'am," the students mumble.

"Good!"

Maritza smirks. "Diane may be cool, but she ain't gonna let you get away with shit-talkin' one of my besties. Besides that, her daughter and Lorna are besties, too." She purses her lips, and Diane just has to smile.


"I just wanna be numb, I don't wanna feel anything," Lorna mumbles as Nicky is signing her cast with You're my favorite girl, one in a million. Feel better soon! Hugs and kisses, Nicky in pink writing inside a fancy red heart. She adds I love you! in tiny letters at the very bottom of the heart.

Nicky wraps her arms around Lorna. "I'm with you, okay?" She hums and kisses the top of Lorna's head while gently stroking her hair. "Do you realize how perfect you are?"

"I hear voices in my dreams and think they're real. I got the dreams come true mentality. God, I'm such a strange girl..."

"No, you aren't..."

"I am!"

"Look...you inspire me to become a better person. I wish more people were like you, because you are so good at loving people."

"No, I'm not...I scare people away..."

"Hey, Christopher's a monster...just plain cruel, remember that! You're a precious human being."

"No...it's so humiliating, though...I'm the only one who's done stupid shit," Lorna worries aloud. "Ain't nobody else got that problem!"

Nicky caps up her marker. "I've done pretty dumb things too...wildest thing I've ever done, though? Should I talk about walking up the stairs on the ramp of an amusement park ride at two in the morning or running along a train track at that same time?"

Lorna raises her eyebrow and her jaw drops. "Oh my god! That's incredibly dangerous!"

Nicky shrugs. "Well, that was while I was bored, homeless, and on drugs...when the ride starts and you're going uphill, you see these stairs on either side, that's on Top Gun at Paramount's Great America in California. See, I'd travel to all the states on a cross country train or by taking bus after bus since I couldn't afford a plane ticket, but I could sometimes sneak on a train."

"Huh...I'm glad you didn't die!"

"Yeah, me too...anyway, ready to go and face the world again, kid?"

"Mm-hm," Lorna murmurs, nodding her head yes. "I wanna at least make it to the last part of English, since I love it there!"

Nicky guides her to Red's car as they follow the Russian woman. "I know."

"I've been crying a lot lately these past few days...I'm beginning to develop a bit of a cold."

"That sucks...I've dealt with it, too."

"How'd you know where I was?"

"I heard him and then you as I was going to meet Flaca for Woodshop, and Maritza was about to head in, but I told her I'd take care of his ugly ass."

"I'm relieved that you protected me like a true heroine. How's your knee? That must've really injured you when you plowed it into his crotch so many times that you missed once and banged it on the floor..."

Nicky takes the ice off her bruised knee to show Lorna the damage. "It doesn't hurt that bad...but I'd get real battle scars for you any day."

Lorna beams through her tears. "That means a lot."

"You're so pretty, and you're really cute when you scrunch up your nose while smiling," Nicky compliments her.

"Okay, you're making me blush now! Uh...so are you, like with your Chiclets and dimples and all. I also really like your eyes."

"Thanks, kid."

It turns out that Lorna appears to be worse than she actually is. Her sprained wrist is starting to improve. The bruising will go away in a week, and so will her forehead injury, black eyes, and split lip. Her hip bones around her vagina are temporarily ruined, and that will take a month to heal. Her broken arm will last for six weeks. She has a concussion from a bump in the back of her head and that will also take some time to disappear.

The damage that he'd done to her heart will never leave, though, Nicky knows this. It'll stay there forever.


"Do you guys think John's ever gonna come back?" Daya asks in Art class after signing the cast on Lorna's arm, you and me, hopeless romantics forever and always! in purple. "He's been gone for two days now."

"Yeah, I've noticed that, too," Flaca says and plucks a black marker out of the box. She scrawls, it sucks we both got casts now, but that just means we're made of steel! underneath Daya's message and next to Maritza's, which says, I enjoy having you as my friend and fellow cheerleader. Hope to see you back soon! in blue. "I dunno, girl, to be real honest."

"Well, I've tried to contact him like by phone, email, Facebook...but nothing. It's like he cut off all contact with me...or disappeared off the face of the Earth. I have that goddamn automated voice message, this number is no longer in service, implanted in my brain now. It's fuckin' annoying and heart-wrenching at the same time."

Lorna, Nicky, Flaca, Alex, Blanca, and Maria give her supportive hugs. "Don't expect him to return," Maria advises her and draws some orange and yellow flowers on Lorna's cast, along with the words, you're gonna get through this! above what Daya put. "It's only gonna keep you in anticipation and disappoint you every morning."

"Alex, your tattoo is right. Love really is pain," Lorna mutters while Alex scribbles, Get well soon, sis! in alternating black and red words besides Nicky's well wishes.

"Yep. Hey...did Christopher ever apologize for spraining your wrist?" Alex wonders aloud.

"No," Lorna responds somberly. "We're finished. Actually...we were never actually together. It was all a fantasy I made up in my head. You don't have to pity me or nothin'...I broke my own heart."

"I had a feeling you lied to us this whole time about him..." Flaca mutters. "Oh, well..."

"I'm sorry...Nicky told me stalking wasn't normal, basically...and I'm gonna start bein' honest from now on and get real help. I dunno if I have some kind of learning disability or I'm just plain crazy."

"Don't call yourself that...crazy is a derogatory term. I'm thinking maybe you could be mentally ill," Nicky tells her.

"I hope I don't get stuck in some psychiatric facility! That makes people even more...out of it!"

"I'll make sure that doesn't happen," Nicky says, pulling Lorna's chair closer to hers.

"I dunno why this had to happen to me...I'm supposed to be perfect, I came from a straight-laced Catholic family...what are they gonna think? Oh, god..."

"Don't worry about that. If they love you, they'll be there for you, and if they disown you, fuck 'em. Leave the house and don't return like Maria here," Blanca suggests while writing with a green marker, Everyone says we're like twins, well, you did inspire me to change up my looks, so thanks! You're cool!

"Oh yeah, we could run away together, with our sisters, since they're awesome, too!" Nicky murmurs while nudging Lorna.

"Please, like Red would let you do that!" Maria says.

"What? Franny's a responsible adult!" Lorna insists.

"She let her cousin put a cigarette pack in his mouth!" Blanca shoots back.

"That was once! She got it back right away! I just wish Franny would get her own apartment so I don't have to live there anymore...but we gotta take care of our mom. It ain't our faults the guys in our family are such losers." Lorna sighs while setting her chin on her fist while propping her elbow on the table. "Okay, ow, that hurt," she grumbles and puts her arm down. "I gotta remember to keep both my right wrist and my left arm elevated. Fuck Christopher and Piscatella both, seriously."

"No one here wants to!" Daya tries to joke, but it works, since the girls chuckle. Ms. Fischer, who's standing by them, does too, probably because she'd heard what they were saying. They don't mind, because she's nice and understanding.

She comes over to them. "I'm sorry, girls. Men really suck, especially when they're not responding to your texts."

"Mr. Luscheck was a dumbass, huh?" Nicky asks and Ms. Fischer shrugs, looking sheepish. "He kinda told me about that...he screws shit up a lot."

"Yeah, he does. Whatever, right?"

"Exactly."

Their teacher looks over at Lorna. "I'll sign your cast, if you want?"

"Sure, thank you. Here, please." Lorna points to the spot near Diane's message, which is It's both a pleasure having you in class and being such a sweet friend to my daughter. I'm so glad to know you.

"Feel better soon," Ms. Fischer murmurs as she scrawls it and stands back with a grin.


"Survivor is the perfect anthem for all of us!" Flaca points out at lunch. It's the usual group, along with Ouija, Pidge, Allison, Pennsatucky, Alana, Stephanie, and the rest of the cheerleaders, who are happy that Lorna is going to come back to the cheer squad. Even Brook congratulates her for choosing herself over Christopher. A few boys are there, too, such as Diablo, Yadriel, Nathan, Hassan, and Adarsh. "Aah, the gang's back together again!"

"Right? Yo, I'm in the mood for singin' again!" Maritza exclaims.

"Me, too!" They both get up, stand on their seats, and start stomping rhythmically. The other girls and guys at their table join in and also clap to the beat. Everyone else begins belting out the lyrics to We Will Rock You along with Flaca and Maritza. The decent teachers and cafeteria ladies seem to enjoy it quite a bit.

They're all panting after jumping back down and the sound of each person's shoes hitting the floor make a huge boom. It almost makes Lorna forget that a third of the school despises her and she's mangled up. "That was fun!" she remarks.

"Ugh, what's this?" Christopher yells from across the cafeteria while he twirls something disgusting covered in spaghetti sauce around his fork and it dangles off the utensil. The kids sitting with Lorna howl with laughter, and she joins in a second later. "Seriously, a jockstrap? You bitches are gross and immature!"

"No, that would be you, fucktard!" Nicky shouts.

The lunch ladies crack up hysterically. "Oh my god, I can't eat this!" He dumps his food in the trash and goes to Angela, who proceeds to console him and glare at the kitchen workers.

"Wow, that was awesome!" Alex comments.

"I know, right?" Blanca asks.

Lorna giggles. "Yeah..."

"Anyway, what happened to Lorna? All I could hear was shrieking before you ran in there, I didn't see a thing," Maritza says.

Nicky's face turns grave. "Is it okay if I tell 'em?" she asks Lorna in a hushed voice, and Lorna nods her head yes. "Christopher beat her up...he bashed her head against the floor so many times, she's now got a concussion, and all she wanted was his love," the blonde reports, and the group gasps, appearing to feel bad for her.

"Shit, I'm sorry," Maria tells her sympathetically, and Flaca and Maritza squeeze her hands while looking at her sadly.

Lorna opens her mouth, but nothing comes out. She's furiously blinking her eyes and rubbing her nose.

"Are you okay, Lorna?" Daya asks in a concerned tone. "I mean like, besides the obvious..."

She nods but continues blinking, faster and faster. She wonders what's wrong with her and if Christopher finally made her cry after all these weeks. Did her friends' words sink into her brain? Has she gotten smarter? She can't believe it. Christopher had never cared about her. He'd never been there when she needed him most. He'd creeped her best friends out. He'd kissed Angela in front of her. He'd never wanted to be her boyfriend. She's afraid to answer the girls because she's holding back tears, and she doesn't want to cry in school.

"I'm fine," is all she can say, but a tear slipping down her cheek gives her away. "Excuse me."

Lorna runs to the bathroom, not looking behind her, even when Brent Schepens jeers, "Oh, boo hoo hoo, a wittle girl didn't get the boy she was after!" He mocks her while pouting and whining, and his friends all burst out cackling.

"I have an idea...I could be her for Halloween!" Angela says with a smirk. Lorna feels too weak to defend herself anymore since it's no use. She's a social pariah now.

She wants to sob her heart out in a stall, and not let anyone hear her, but she doesn't make it. She falls to the ground, her sobs increasing as she snivels. Her face is hot with tears as she mumbles to herself, "He never wanted me." She's grabbing her heart and gasping. It really hurts. Her heart is broken in two. Everyone was right about everything. She lets out an ear-piercing cry and grabs Kleenex from her purse and blows her nose loudly. She wasn't successful in getting him, she realizes once again, so she smashes her head into the brick wall. "I hate my stupid, fucked-up brain...makin' me do insane shit...I wanna fall down the stairs in front of school...or at the back of the science wing..."

Just then, she hears footsteps behind her and someone calls her name. Before she can turn, she feels a pair of arms wrap themselves around her body. It's Nicky. "You are not fine! I won't say I told you so."

"You can. I feel so guilty. I'm sorry for being rude and dumb about Christopher," Lorna bawls.

"I'm still not gonna say it. You need to be loved, don't you?"

"Yes, I need a bunch of hugs right now."

Nicky holds Lorna against her chest, and Lorna allows her tears to fall on Nicky's shirt and get it wet. The blonde is combing her fingers through Lorna's hair and wiping the tears off her face.

"Let it all out, Lorna," she murmurs gently.

"Why didn't he love me? What's so horrible about me?"

"Nothing at all! You are special and beautiful, and Christopher is a big jerk. I mean, look at all these signatures on your cast! You're the brightest star in the sky, and you're so loved, baby, you don't need him." Lorna stares down at her newest ones.

You're a wonderful girl with true courage, a lovely spirit, and much spunk! -Red

Even if things are gloomy, you always lighten up our days! -Gloria

Your smile is contagious!-Aleida

We enjoy it when you chat with us in line!-Norma

Get well! -Miss Claudette

Stay fresh! -Pennsatucky

The others who Nicky and Lorna had been sitting with, had just drawn stars or random patterns and in the cheerleaders and Alana's cases, smiley faces.

"Yeah, he's a dipshit!" Lorna shouts. "Oh, that felt good to yell out! Dipshit!" she shrieks again, but she shakes with sobs as Nicky comforts her.

"Calm down, take a few breaths." Nicky rubs Lorna's arms to try to warm her up, and it feels nice. She used to be tense, but now, she's totally relaxed. Lorna is so happy she can be herself with the blonde. "Do ya feel better now?" Nicky asks.

"I think so." Lorna nods.

Nicky holds and rocks Lorna until she finishes crying.


There is real fear in Lorna's eyes as she and Nicky go into Biology. They'd made an attempt to escape the school, but Piscatella had caught them before they could. "Don't be afraid, I'm right here," Nicky assures Lorna while squeezing her fingers.

"I'm sorry, Nicky, but I can't help it..." Lorna mumbles. Humps turns around and grins at them creepily. He looks exactly like Frankenstien, with his multiple well-deserved cuts and burn marks. The color drains from Lorna's face, causing her injuries to stand out. Nicky stands in front of her protectively and takes her to her seat.

He looms over them. "Well, hello, ladies! My, that was quite a treat you gave me last Friday! I could not stop thinking about it and masturbating!" Besides Nicky and Lorna, Pennsatucky is literally the only other person in the class who doesn't laugh. "A bit of the psycho bitch femme fatale mixed with the hot, dumb blonde...oh...maybe I should make those two fiery Latinas fight, you know how they have a temper!" He sniffs the back of Lorna's neck and Nicky holds her hand as best she can under the desks. "You're smelling extra scrumptious today."

"Is it like gingerbread or rice pudding?" Gustav asks.

"It sure is, my boy. Her skin is also the texture of a peach...every time I eat one, you're on my mind, sugar," Humps tells Lorna while winking at her. She squirms in her seat as he forces his mouth onto hers.

"Bite him!" Nicky urges Lorna and steps hard on his foot as he jumps back, groaning.

"You just about chewed my tongue off, you dirty whore! George was right about you ladies, you like to play rough. Well, I can do that, too. A true sadist feasts upon their own kind...prove you're one of us by gulping this down." He sets two cups of red liquid in front of them. "This has been collected from all the times Arturo has drawn blood from Gloria. He just let it gush out of her until he had enough to donate to me."

Nicky wants to pass out and she and Lorna both wrinkle their noses and shudder while looking away. "Why would we...drink that?"

"Ew, gross," Lorna adds weakly.

"I just told you to. You could participate in candle wax torture if you'd rather do that...I have a bunch of it in my closet." He starts to head towards it.

Nicky closes her eyes and whimpers while picking up the cup, and Lorna shakes her head as she sobs. "Let's take a fast swig at the same time and swallow before we can even taste it, okay?"

"I can't...this is from someone we're friends with!"

"I know, it's repulsive, but it's either this or getting our bodies eternally destroyed. On the count of three?"

"Oh, god..."

"One...two...three!" At the same time, they down it, but then cough half of it back up. Humps snickers evilly.

"Aw, look at my little vampires! You're such amateurs!"

"Fuck you! I've got a breathing problem and I couldn't handle knowing it was Gloria's!" Nicky snaps.

"I was having a panic attack because of that," Lorna chimes in meekly.

"Well, I can no longer sacrifice you because you're no longer an innocent little virgin. Joey has informed me that he fucked you last year. I'm majorly disappointed, but that's okay...I can still play with your watermelons, just not kill you. You'll still be completely defenseless under me!"

"Don't even fuckin' think about it!" Nicky growls.

Lorna crosses her arms across her chest, trying to push down her breasts underneath her shirt. "They've been sagging lately...they're not attractive anymore."

"They'll pop right back up once I do this!" Humps rips her arms off her chest, reaches up her shirt, and squeezes them tightly. "Oh, yes..."

"Hell no!" Nicky hollers and slams her textbook into the side of his head a dozen times, making him topple over. She lifts up Lorna and takes her out of the room as quickly as possible.


"You got any plans with Adarsh comin' up?" Gloria asks Daya before she has to leave for her convenience store job.

Daya nods her head yes. "I'm going to Dave and Busters with him tomorrow night."

"That's neat!" Aleida comments. She turns to Gloria. "Well, have a good time at work, but no fraudulent food stamps!"

"Thanks, and you know I won't! I haven't since I got that close call. Bye, everyone!" Gloria hugs and kisses Aleida, Daya, and the kids and then walks out the door.

Aleida breathes a sigh of relief. "Okay, she's gone, now we can talk."

"About what?"

"This been botherin' me all day and night...when we were visiting Cesar, did you notice Arturo in the room? Like, I keep tryin' to remember if I saw him..."

"No, I'm not sure." Daya gasps and her eyes widen. "Do you think he escaped?"

"Nah...maybe they just have different schedules based on last names or somethin'."

"We don't know his...and he was always there with Cesar."

"What should we do?" Aleida wonders aloud. "I'm positive he's too angry to speak with us at the moment...besides, he wouldn't care that Gloria is in possible danger..."

"If he's told Arturo where Gloria lives..." Daya starts out. "I wouldn't put it past him to be a fuckin' traitor! We're dead if Arturo finds out we're basically hiding her!"

"Yeah, well she's now going to the bodega alone...I called the prison before she got up, and they said he was still locked away, so I hope they ain't lyin'."

"I'm gonna take a cab there right now to make sure he's not back out on the streets. You stay here. If he comes around, call the police and just stand by the window, not in front of it! He's sure to recognize you then."

"Sure, but if you catch a glimpse of him, do not let him see you. Even if you in a vehicle, he can still tail you on the bus. I mean it!"

"I won't, Ma. I'll wear sunglasses and use one of my scarves as a fancy head wrap."

"Okay, hurry and get ready! Pay attention to your surroundings, be alert and safe, and the second shit gets scary, dial nine-one-one. I'mma text Gloria, I wanna check if she's okay. If she asks why, we'll just tell her it's because we care about her, which is true." Aleida sends a message to Gloria, and her best friend responds almost right away. I'm fine! "She's good for now, but that can change at any moment. There are also bodyguards posted at the front, but we wanna be extra cautious."

"Alright." Daya quickly prepares herself and calls a cab to pick her up. When it comes to the curb, she and Aleida embrace. "Good luck!"

"Thanks! You too!" Aleida blows her oldest daughter kisses and crosses her fingers behind her back.

"Why's he sleeping?" Christina wants to know as she points to where Leon is. "It's not nighttime!"

"He's not feeling well."

"I wanna go to Camp Skylight like Daya this summer!"

"I'll sign you up."

"Okay, Mommy!" The little girl reaches her arms up while jumping a few times, so Aleida picks her up and carries her to Gloria's room, where her brother and friends are. She plays with the children while listening for any banging sounds on the door. So far, it's been pretty quiet, except for the sound of the kids talking and giggling as they color on pieces of paper. Then, Christina pretends to feed Julio his baby bottle while Benny and Emiliano stack blocks. Aleida sits back and watches them have fun while conversing back-and-forth with Daya, who hasn't yet seen Arturo. She gets a lump in her throat. How could she have almost missed her babies' last years of these precious moments?

There's a light tapping on the door and she gets up to answer it. "You supposed to be restin'!" she tells Leon as she lets him in. Gloria's sons stop what they're doing and hug his legs.

"I just woke up from my long nap!"

"You're back walking around, big dude!" Benny comments happily.

"Duuuude!" Julio echoes while clapping his hands excitedly, and Aleida laughs softly.

"That's right, boys!" Leon leans down. "Whatcha doin' there?" He glances around at all of the kids while smiling.

"We're making a towa!" Benny exclaims.

"It looks nice!"

Emiliano frowns while shaking a block at Leon. He sets it on the floor gently and runs to Aleida. Christina follows her brother while sucking her thumb and pointing at Leon a few times. "I know, he's real friendly to you guys, huh?"

Her children go back to playing with Gloria's, and then Leon moves over to be next to Aleida. "My sickness has mostly gone away, but I'm tired of being bedridden. I wanna go out again!"

"Well, that's a good sign! Are you sure, though, because last night, you were so exhausted that you couldn't keep your eyes open and you only had saltine crackers and water for dinner."

"I love your concern for me, but really, Aleida, I got better!" He wraps his arms around her waist and kisses the side of her neck and her shoulder.

"Oh, mmm...I'm glad!" She giggles at his soft touches. "You certainly do feel stronger."

"I am! How was your day?"

"Great...nothin' much happened, though...but yesterday, wow...one of those teachers...they tried to torture Daya's friend, Lorna, to death, but I came in and got her the fuck outta there," Aleida whispers. She's surprised how easily it comes out to him. "I felt good rescuin' her."

"You should. You're so brave, and that's one of the many qualities I admire about you. She must've been extremely grateful." He places his lips on her cheek and lets them stay there.

"Oh, she was, but the poor girl was terrified...I don't wanna think about what would've happened had I not gotten there in time."

"Me neither. You've always been a heroine in my eyes."

Aleida's heart expands when hearing this, and she beams. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"I started to tell Cesar the story, but he wasn't really...mature enough to listen to the whole thing...and he treated it like I did fuckin' nothin'...he couldn't get past commenting about her body, and then I didn't wanna tell him anything else."

"I can understand why. So rude of him!"

"I know..." Her phone buzzes beside her and she grabs it. I made it to the store, and Gloria and I are both okay. I never saw Arturo.

Aleida shoots a text back to Daya. He could be somewhere else, you never know. Stay with Gloria, don't let her out of your sight.

I will.

"What's going on?" Leon asks.

"We're kinda tryin' to hunt down Arturo 'cause I can't recall ever seein' him last night when we went to visit Cesar. They're in the same prison, and I'm afraid that he's told Arturo where we live because he can't get it out of his brain that Gloria turned him in to the cops. She didn't...Daya did, but we're sayin' it was a drug bust outta nowhere. That's...that's the reason for the alarm system. We don't want his cousin to get us or whateva...and it'll prevent Arturo from trying to knock down our front door."

"Is that the ass who was threatening you two weeks ago?"

"Duardo, yeah. Cesar's cousin, the drug ring leader, but I don't think he's a problem anymore...he may have gotten killed or arrested, since we haven't heard from him, otherwise that alarm would've gone off...hold up, what if Arturo tried to break out of prison, but he was murdered doin' it? That'd be good karma!"

"I hope that's what it is, but I'll stay here to watch out for all of you."

"You don't gotta...besides, I thought you was goin' stir crazy."

"I have to protect you and your loved ones, right?"

"Mm-hm...it's real nice of you."

"Anytime."

"So, I got an announcement to make!" Aleida calls out as Daya and Gloria both walk into the apartment later. "Leon is officially gonna live with us!"

"That's excellent!" Gloria comments.

"Yay!" Benny cheers. The other kids don't appear to be too affected by it, but they don't react negatively, either.

"Wow, that's great!" Daya puts in. "You must be happy!"

"I am! It'll be good for you kids and Gloria, too. He's a positive influence!"

"Where is he now?" Gloria asks.

"He's cleaning his apartment and he's gonna sell it!"

"Oh, cool!" Daya says.

Aleida is so thankful to see her best friend and her daughter still in one piece, so she wraps them both into an embrace and gestures for the children to join their circle. "I love you all!"

Their faces brighten up. "We love you too, Ma," Daya responds and kisses Aleida's cheek.


"Where you hidin' her?" Alex jumps as a man with slurred, irate, loud speech barges into Friendly's. Beads of sweat roll down his red face and he's gritting his teeth. "I know she's here, you fuckin' cunts!" Diablo and Yadriel keep Blanca and Maria behind them as he ambles around the restaurant.

"You need to leave, sir," Diane instructs him fiercely. "I'll let the police know! Uh...my friend is one!"

"I won't go until I find Gloria!" he bellows drunkenly while slamming his hands on the counter, making Diane back away from it. Alex drops her pad of paper and pencil in fright and Blanca and Maria gasp at the same time and huddle closer to each other and their boyfriends. "You know where she is, you're one of her bitch friends!" He sways and then takes long, uneven strides to where the customers are sitting. "You seen my fiancée?" he asks each of them roughly while poking them, and they shake their heads no with fear written all over their faces. Alex tries to dodge out of his way, but he pushes her aside while going into the women's bathroom. She bumps into the wall hard and almost loses her footing, but her mother catches her.

"You stay the fuck away from my daughter!" Diane yells while dialing Charles' number, since he's on the mend. She puts her hands on top of Alex's shoulders and cups her cheeks. "Are you okay, sweetie?"

"Yeah...just afraid and a bit shaken." Alex winces when Diane pats the bad spot gently.

"He'll be going back to rot in his cell soon." She puts the phone back to her ear.

"Diane, hi..." Charles answers.

"You have to come to Friendly's, hurry...Gloria's ex is here, he...he's intoxicated and being verbally violent...accusing us of hiding her...we...we don't even know where she is, but if we did, we wouldn't tell him...he also shoved Alex and got into customers' faces...I asked him to get out, but he refuses..."

"Okay, I'll be right there!"

"Thanks..."

"Where the fuck are you, you stupid bitch?" they can hear Arturo shouting angrily as many crashes sound, presumably from him kicking in stall doors. Someone screams, and a girl runs out, panting and whimpering. He enters into the men's room, banging on doors.

"It's locked, asshole!" someone hollers.

Arturo bursts out and stumbles back to the counter. "I'm sorry, forgive me, ¡por favor!" he cries. "I'm just searching for her...this is the last place I've looked...I've tried at her place, but it's been sold...Lourdes' in Florida, but her aunt wasn't home, I checked the store she works at, but nothing...the mall, the movie theater, and different restaurants and diners, the park...she's vanished! Can you...just tell me...if you've seen her?"

"We haven't!" Diane replies. "She's not around."

"Yeah, I don't even know who you're talking about," Alex lies.

"Stop harassing us!" Blanca says.

"You're lying!" he roars at them. "Stop being dishonest!" He pounds on the cash register and Diane jumps back.

"Hey! Police! Freeze, put your hands up where I can see them!" Charles hollers while pointing his gun at Arturo, and everyone sighs with relief. The place clears out with the exception of Alex and Diane. Arturo tries to make a run for it, but Charles grabs him and forces him into handcuffs. "Resisting a police officer, huh? You are arrested for felony escape and disturbing the peace!"

"Ford, we got it from here." Two other cops grab Arturo and one reads him his Miranda rights. "Down to max you go, buddy."

"Max?" Alex wonders aloud.

"Maximum security prison," Charles explains as they take him out of the restaurant. "Was anyone hurt?" he asks worriedly. He goes behind the counter and he and Diane hug each other tightly.

"I probably just got a bruise on my shoulder, but nothing else. I'll check it out," Alex responds. She doesn't want to make a big deal out of it because it could've been way worse. It'll stop being painful soon enough, and she'll put ice on it if she needs to.

"Not too bad, but the rest of us were terrified," Diane chimes in.

"I apologize, that must've been so frightening!"

"It was!"

Alex walks into the women's bathroom and takes off her leather jacket while turning to the side in the mirror. There is a huge red mark on her shoulder. "Oh, shit," she mutters to herself. It's bigger than she'd thought. "Fuck!" At least it isn't on the same shoulder as her rose tattoo. She puts her black jacket back on slowly so it doesn't rub too hard against where she's sore and goes back out.

"How is it, Al?" Diane wants to know.

"Fine...I just need some ice." Alex groans softly as the pain intensifies and she sits down quickly while holding the tender area. "Oh, and Advil or Tylenol, too..."

"You look like you might pass out," Charles says worriedly, and Diane gives her pills and she takes them with water. She rests her head on her arms and shuts her eyes.

Charles drives them to the hospital when Alex later complains of a hard bump under her bruise. It turns out that she has a hematoma and needs a cold compress, to elevate her shoulder, and to take Tylenol regularly. It should go away in about ten days.

As she holds Alex and kisses the top of her head, Diane murmurs, "My poor baby...I'm so sorry."

"I'll be okay. Uh...should we tell Gloria?"

"No, she'll just...she'll blame herself that you got injured, and we don't want her to panic when he's never going to escape again. They'll keep a sharper eye on him in prison this time."

"That's good."

"I'll get you an alarm system for Friendly's," Charles tells Diane, and she grins up at him.

"Thank you."


The first step in the girls' plan, even before Gloria and Fahri meet, is to have him get acquainted with the other moms, Red, Leon, Charles, and Kubra, at Fahri's apartment. Daya and Aleida had just told Gloria that they were going out for a mother-daughter outing. Aleida accepts Fahri right away, no questions asked, Flaca's mother is a little shy, but she warms up to him, Red interrogates him a bit until she seems convinced that he's innocent, the men chat with him about all kinds of things, especially sports and what they do for work. At the same time, they're also getting to know Kubra some more.

"I'm basically like a father figure to Alex, and I happen to like smoking, but I'm not an addict," Fahri is informing the adults as they lounge around on the couch.

Flaca gasps happily. "Just like Gloria, am I right?" she asks in a hushed voice when she and her friends are sitting on the guest bed, listening in on the men and women. "The second part, I mean."

"Totally!" Maritza whispers back to her while smiling gleefully.

"My mom's that way too, though," Daya tells them.

"Shh, just listen!" Lorna says.

"You got a job?" Aleida questions Fahri.

"Uh...not exactly," he admits, sounding bashful. "Who would hire me? I'm a pothead!"

"Well, shit," Alex mutters. "I don't think-"

"You can't have that attitude, man! Why don't you get one at Martin Van Buren High?" Blanca recommends. They exit the guest room and he looks over at them quizzically. "You can't just sit around smoking all day, you know?"

"That would be the smart thing to do," he murmurs. "I'll keep it in mind."

Nicky gets an extremely proud smile on her face. "Yeah, just go in for an interview with your resume all set up and maybe you'll find a girlfriend there or something!"

"Is she trying to ruin this for us with her big mouth?" Maria hisses as Lorna gently jabs her elbow into Nicky's side. They all stare at their blonde friend with their eyebrows raised.

Luckily, this doesn't make him suspicious of anything. "That'd be a miracle, finding both a career and love at the same time."

Aleida rests her hand on Leon's and squeezes it while grinning happily. "It can happen! It did to me."

"I'm feeling really good about this, then. Thanks, guys, I appreciate it."

The girls go back into the guest room, except for Alex, who walks into the kitchen. She returns with another pack of ice and holds it against her shoulder as she sits up against the pillows of the guest bed.

"I still can't believe Arturo was actually in your presence, and he hurt you!" Lorna comments.

"Yeah, it's a good thing he's locked up tighter this time," Nicky adds.

"It's alright, I was in his way. I'm just glad it was me and not Gloria."

"Don't blame yourself...it's that motherfucker!" Daya tells Alex.

"I know..."

"So...Leon's moving in and his apartment is for sale," Daya informs them.

"He should give it to Red!" Nicky points out. "Shelly's nice and all, but I'm sure Red would rather live alone!"

"Oh yeah, suggest that to them!" Blanca urges her.


"About this P...it's gotta be someone holding a grudge against you. I do admit, Leanne seems pretty fishy...anyone else seem fucked up enough to care what you guys did to 'em last year?" Nicky asks when she, Lorna, Alex, Flaca, and Daya are all sitting on Lorna's bed. They're sharing a bag of pretzels and admiring how Nicky tosses grapes up in the air and is able to catch them in her mouth.

"I didn't do anything, I'm a good girl!" Lorna says indignantly. "Wow, you're great at that, by the way."

Nicky grins at her. "Thanks kid, and I know you are, but I'm just trying to help you girls solve this shit!"

"Piper was the bad seed out of all of us," Flaca lets Nicky know.

"Yeah...and we're just wondering why someone's out to get us for what Piper did," Daya chimes in.

"It could be someone you least expect that may have been affected in an indirect way. They haven't texted Lorna in a while...what about the rest of you?" Nicky wants to know.

"No, not since Saturday," Alex responds. "They sent us a video of these people torturing Piper...but we couldn't figure out who it was."

"We've all been hurt now...maybe P...feels bad?" Flaca asks.

"Mm-hm, or more that they're satisfied that other people are doing their dirty work, and don't think they'll scare us enough," Daya mutters.

"I don't get it...why isn't P targeting Polly or Larry?" Lorna asks. "They were real close to Piper, too!"

"She and Larry were always fighting over whether she was into me or him so they broke up after a while and he hooked up with Polly, so of course, Piper found out and ditched them both before the P drama. P probably pitied them, so didn't bother sending them texts," Alex responds.

"Lucky them..."

"How could you do this to me, Mommy? I hate you!" Suzanne yells at Piper while punching her over and over again through the darkness. "I hate you!"

Lorna gasps and runs up to her. "Hey, Suzanne, you gotta stop! It's Piper, not your ma!"

"Leave me alone!" Suzanne hollers at Lorna, pushes her away, and continues beating up Piper.

"Uh...that's enough, Mara! I'll call the cops!"

"Shut up and get outta here!" Suzanne is clearly not herself right now, and Lorna doesn't know how to help Piper. The brunette watches in horror as the leader of her group of friends is attacked to death or at least unconsciousness, she can't tell. She backs away slowly so she doesn't get hit either. Her steps are quicker as she gets closer to her apartment, and she breaks off into a sprint, almost wheezing as soon as she returns to where the others are.

"Lorna, where were you?" Daya asks.

"Did you find Pipes?" Alex questions her.

"I...I was out there...I tried to look for her...she's...she's disappeared."

"Shit!" Flaca says, and Alex looks absolutely devastated.

"How could this have happened?" Daya wants to know.

"I have no idea," Lorna mumbles shakily as her chest constricts with guilt.

"Oh my god!" Alex cries. "She can't be..."

Lorna starts panicking and holding on tight to Nicky's hands. "I'm scared that I may have seen somethin', I know about it, but it's just hidden in my mind...it appears in random flashbacks...or maybe they're real bad recurring nightmares...and I don't remember it sometimes...I don't even know if it's real or I just imagined it!" She claps her hand on her forehead. "I'm sorry...I don't...I can't remember it! Maybe when I get some help, I can be of more assistance..." She gulps when the girls stare at her with wide eyes and their mouths drop open.

"Okay, what do you think you saw?" Nicky asks her calmly while rubbing her back in a soothing motion.

"Um...Suzanne...but not really her...she was...she kept, um...striking Piper...with her fists...and I told her...I tried...I started to intervene, but...Suzanne...in Mara mode...that's her evil self...she told me to leave...I didn't wanna get killed...so I...I went back...I left her there...I was too scared...I...I knew that wasn't actually Suzanne...and I just...I knew how Piper treated her...I was trembling so bad...I let her..." Lorna breaks off into sobs and Nicky holds her. "I fucked up...so much..."

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Alex demands softly.

"Like I said, I could've made it up. So many things in my life...I don't know which ones are fake and which aren't. How would I even...be sure...it actually...I'm not a credible witness." Lorna wails into her hands. "Fuckin' damn it, someone else should've searched for her!"

"We were all sleeping, you two were the only ones up, for some odd reason," Daya murmurs.

"We're back to square one," Flaca mutters bitterly.

"Yeah...I apologize," Lorna mumbles and then sniffles.

"If it's that vivid, then it could be a terrible memory that keeps replaying itself in your brain," Nicky says. "We could ask Suzanne if Mara has made her do awful things before."

"How would she know? People with multiple personalities sometimes can't recall what their alters do," Alex grumbles defeatedly.

"Well, we could try to bring out Mara and get her to confess," Daya suggests.

"No...I don't want Suzanne to get locked up for something she didn't do," Lorna replies. "It's like...she's got a mental illness, she can't help it...like me. Piper may have been aggravating her and then provoked Mara to escape. She kept calling Piper 'Mommy' for some reason."

"I know, but we gotta figure it out," Flaca tells her. "The fact that P is targeting all of us...makes me think we were all involved...except we were all drinking and getting high that night-"

"I wasn't on drugs," Lorna interrupts her. "Maybe that's why I was the only one awake besides Piper. I feel like you girls helped me cover up something...but none of us can remember it."

Daya sighs. "It's been so long since the worst thing that's ever happened to any of us has been a skinned knee on the playground."

"I know...but back then, I never knew my besties." Flaca smiles at Lorna while putting her arms around Alex and Daya. "Oh, and Mari, too, but she's more like my soul sister."

"Aw, you're sweet," Alex murmurs.

"Yeah," the others agree.

"Hey, I'm feeling a little left out here," Nicky says teasingly.

"Group hug!" Lorna announces, and they all embrace.


"What do you think their meeting is for?" Blanca asks Maritza as they hunt around Ms. Ramos' office with Maria, Ouija, Pidge, Michelle, and Zirconia, for a special expensive eyeliner that Maritza thinks she's lost.

"Piper shit, probably," Maritza responds.

"Ay dios, that bitch again," Maria grumbles sourly.

"I know. Like...I don't think even they care about her anymore," Ouija mutters.

"They're doing it to please Alex, obviously," Michelle points out. "I don't get why you guys can't stand her. I mean...I know she was extremely loyal to Piper, who was a total she-monster, but I...I kinda like her. She's super pretty and kinda hot. Oh my god, but don't tell her I said nothin', Maritza."

"Sure."

"First Lorna la Loca, now Alex, what's goin' on with you, Michelle?" Zirconia asks.

"Yo, don't call my friend crazy," Maritza snaps.

"Her ass is obviously whipped," Pidge points out, slapping Michelle's butt playfully with the back of her hand. "Lesibiana."

"Hey!" Michelle protests, moving away from her while giving her the stink eye. "You suck, dude."

"What's wrong with that?" Maritza wonders out loud while pulling open a drawer and pulling out a folded-up piece of paper.

"Nothin', it's how we tease each other," Ouija explains. "You gotta hang with us more often, and invite Flaca and Daya too."

"Okay...what about my white friends?" Maritza wants to know.

"Sure, but they gotta get used to 'em," Blanca answers, nodding towards the others.

Maritza barely hears anyone else as she opens the paper with curiosity. "It's my birth certificate..."

"What'd you find?" Maria asks, and the girls crowd around her.

"I'm actually...seventeen...huh?!" Maritza rereads it as shock fires through her. "What the fuck?"

"How could that be possible? You just started freshman year, and you're so little!" Zirconia exclaims.

"Holy shit...I gotta tell Flaca and the rest of the gang...and like, talk to my mom!" She can't stop staring at it. "Maritza Ramos...was born at...Mercy Hospital...on the twenty-first day of July, nineteen eighty-seven...to parents...no father listed...mother, Juliana Ramos...why did she never tell me this? I'm so confused!"

"I got your eyeliner," Michelle says and hands it to Maritza.

"Thanks...it's just...I feel like I don't know her now."

"Hey, don't worry, girl, we got your back," Blanca assures her.

"Yeah, now this mystery's much more important than stupid Piper!" Maria shouts, and the girls hi-five each other.


"Sure you're all set here?" Leon asks Red as she slips on her purple reading glasses.

"Yes, thank you!"

"Okay, awesome!"

When he leaves, Red tours her new apartment and decorates it with potted plants, wall paintings, and scented candles. She then settles on the comfortable couch with a good book, turns on a light, and begins to read until she's tired.


The girls have long gone home when Nicky slips into bed with her sister. She thinks Tricia has fallen asleep, but she's proven wrong when she hears, "Hey, Nicky..."

"Trish...you okay?"

"Yeah...I just wanted to let you know that Taystee's not that sick anymore," she mumbles with her eyes closed.

"Oh, she and Poussey texted me...it's such fantastic news! My bruises are now greenish-yellow, so they're gonna disappear soon!"

"Mm-hmm...I love it here," Tricia says while nestling into Nicky's loving arms.

Nicky kisses the top of her little sister's head. "Same. I feel like I'm in wonderland because it's so peaceful and safe!"

"Me, too but of course, we'd never admit that to Lorna!"

"Nah...I just show her how grateful I am that she did this sweet favor for us."

Tricia sighs deeply and then nods while smiling. "I will, too...I'm thinking we could take the sisters somewhere cool that they've probably never been, like as a thank you present for their hospitality."

"Oh, good idea!"

"Is Lorna gonna be okay?"

"I sure hope so, kid."

"There's something else I wanna tell you...I think I'm into girls...like...I'm a lesbian."

Nicky chuckles softly while beaming. "Nothin' wrong with that! I fully accept you!"

"I knew you would, because you're one, too...but I'll need tons of dating advice from you. Mercy wants us to officially be girlfriends, and I said yes! We started holding hands today, but not a smooch yet. I'm not that experienced."

"Congratulations! I'll help you with anything you need."

"Thanks! You're awesome! So...who was your first kiss with?"

"I've never had one, but I've been wanting Lorna and I to make out since three weeks ago from yesterday. Don't tell her!"

"I won't! Pinky swear!" They hook their baby fingers together while smiling. "We're a team!"

"We sure are!" Nicky agrees.


In the middle of the night, Franny's slumber is interrupted by her younger sister tossing and turning. Lorna's breath keeps hitching and her body quivers as she leans against Franny. "Hey...Lorna, what's wrong?" she asks through a yawn. "Are ya cryin', sweetie?"

"Nothin'...sorry for wakin' ya." Lorna's voice is thick and small. "It's just a real bad dream...I forgot what happened in it."

"That's okay." Lorna is usually a silent and calm sleeper, but Franny knows it could be because of Piscatella and Humps' actions coupled with the fact that Lorna's friend had been confirmed to be dead not too long ago, only close to a month, not to mention the danger her other friends have been in. "I don't blame ya for having nightmares, with all that's been goin' on lately." She threads her fingers through Lorna's hair and curls the ends of it. "Want me to hold you so you can drift off peacefully?"

"Yeah, I always enjoy that...it helps me bunches. Thanks, sissy. I gotta get Kleenex first on the side table."

"Anytime, little one." Franny pecks Lorna's cheek and assists her into a sitting position so she can blow her nose. Ten or eleven honks later, Lorna settles back into the fetal position. She keeps her arms stretched out in front of her and Franny is careful not to move them too much as she pulls Lorna closer to her. "I'm aware of what everyone says about Piscatella, but he put his hands on my baby sis, and Humps forced you to fight Nicky. I'll do my best to make sure they both waste away in freezing cells for the rest of their miserable lives or just die. I promise, Lorn."

"They're so terrifying, though, Franny! It ain't never gonna happen...we're only free when we graduate or if we ain't at Martin Van Buren High. We can't change schools, this is the cheapest one in the district!"

"You're right, honey...but that won't stop me from my attempts to get rid of 'em forever!"

"The good thing is, though, I'm gettin' some help! Nicky and I are gonna search for one, high and low, because Healy is awful! It ain't depression...it's more...I can't separate make-believe from the truth. For example...this whole time, I thought Christopher was attracted to me, but he ain't..."

Even though Franny doesn't understand why Lorna can't get a grip on reality, other than the reason of her just being a lovesick teenager, she's still going to support her in all of this. "I wish you the best of luck with that!"

Lorna's already started drifting off to sleep while sucking her thumb.

Thank you for reading and reviewing, A Star In My Universe and HannahMiley1fan!