Beyond Good and Evil

Chapter Nine: The Tango Haley

Midnight was her favorite color. Even when she had been innocent, her soul pure, her mind clean, Haley James had had an inclination towards the color. It could be black or the deepest blue. No one was ever quite sure, so no one could say definitively whether you were right or wrong. Haley liked to think it was both, the shade taking on shades of its own. Her personal favorite was the deepest blue tinge possible, the color of the night sky, the color of Lucas's eyes when he was angry. But right now, it was the sky peering through the bay windows that retained her affection, as the blonde boy's eyes sparkled and danced, lighter than she had ever seen them.

Lucas Scott leaned casually against his dark wood desk, the moonlight glinting off his blonde locks as he listened intently to the phone glued to his ear. The dulcet tones of Brooke Davis thudded through the lines. Haley couldn't make out exactly what she was saying, but the mere fact that she was speaking and Lucas cared was a little more than she could handle. Fortunately, the twinges of disappointment were beginning to darken his light blue orbs, and she could almost feel the conversation winding down. She remained poised at the door, eager to hear the last vestiges of their conversation.

"I love you too," he said into the phone, a teeny smile curling the edges of his pink lips. As the words left him, Lucas was in awe himself. They weren't empty. They weren't hollow. Lucas Scott couldn't feel himself filling with mean-spirited chuckles; he couldn't sense the smirk creeping across his handsome face. Instead, he felt relief that she had said it first.

As the words left his lips, those lips that had claimed her own on so many occasions, Haley James knew that a boundary had been crossed. The lines between her and Lucas had always been drawn in sand, while their wills were cast in iron. She could feel the tide swaying, the line disappearing, and she felt alone for the first time in three years. In her mind, she was a little girl again, long blonde curls whipping in the wind as the ocean breeze swept away all that she had loved.

"I love you too?" she spat, almost cringing as the words seemed to tear a pierce of her with them on their way out. Alarmed, his eyes darted up to meet hers, and what she found it them hurt. Guilt. Waiting a moment for the receiver to hit the base of the telephone, she continued as he squirmed under her intense scrutiny. How had he not noticed she was standing in the doorway the whole time? Lucas had always been able to just feel Haley, to sense her presence at all times. "Jesus Christ. You're completely pussy whipped."

"I am not," Lucas crossed his arms defensively over his broad chest. In this moment, he forcibly reminded her of a child, defiant but fearful as he tried to stand up to her. If she could only make him angry, she could handle it. His eyes would darken to that color that she loved so dearly, the intensity of the moment would up. Haley James couldn't handle vulnerability. She thrived off confrontation, she adored pain. Maybe that was why she so loved it--- no one could cause it, not for her. No one except Lucas.

Tears rushed to her eyes, blurring the honey irises as she blinked rapidly. That fucker was making her cry! Haley James hadn't cried since her father left, since he left her all alone with that psychotic bitch of a mother. At least, not real tears. She had managed many a crocodile on occasions when it would work to her benefit, but Haley had long discovered that crying did you no good if there was no one to take advantage of. But the wetness moistening her eyes was salty and it burned.

"What's wrong with you? Why are you acting like this?" Lucas leaned towards her slightly, peering intently at his stepsister. The beautiful blonde had always seemed so invincible. Haley James was so untouchable that it used to seem like a game, just to prod her into feeling something towards him.

"I'm sorry. It's just upsetting," she whispered, her voice hoarse as the back of her hand swiped at her teary eyes. Her black eyeliner smeared, the smokiness of her eyes making it all the more clear. "You're in love with her. You don't love me anymore."

It was the first time it had been said aloud. He had always assumed that was what he felt for her, and that was what she felt for him in return. Yet something about it being said aloud, especially at this time, was a shock. He wasn't sure how he felt about it, but he could feel something warm pooling within him.

"Oh, come on, Haley!" he sighed exasperated, his fingers running through his slightly overgrown blonde hair. "It was just a bet."

"At first it was," she nodded in agreement, her eyes widening as she tried to make her point. "But now it's grown to something bigger."

"Hales, you know I love you. I've always loved you," he sighed, and she let the nickname slide.

"Not anymore you don't. It's obvious!"

"I can't believe you're reacting like this," he laughed, but it was cold and hollow, and neither found anything remotely amusing. "You're just saying this because you lost the bet."

"Is that what you think?" her light brown orbs widened for a fraction of a second before narrowing. This she could control. This could be manipulated until she was comfortable again. She didn't have to lose everything here, not if she played her cards right.

Lucas said nothing, mere nodding was enough. Striding the room with determination, Haley plopped onto his bed, one of the largest she had ever seen and had held many a girl before her. Including Brooke Davis, mere hours ago. The thought made her want to throw up, but the stakes were too high now, and Haley James wasn't a quitter. Leaning back, she slowly slid the black lace panties down her tan thighs. Tossing them casually at him, she sat back and spread her legs apart.

"Alright, come on, let's get this over with," a challenge was written all over her face as she picked up his cell phone from the bedside table. Flipping it open, she cast a disinterested gaze in his direction. She was pushing him now, pushing him to the limit and pushing him away. It would be hard for someone on the outside to understand the transformation that had just taken place within Haley James. Others would know that you always hurt the ones you love. "Whenever you're ready. Just stick it in. While you're doing that I'm just going to make some calls."

Poised halfway between the bed and the desk, Lucas was torn between wanting to jump her and wanting to run, far far away. He could feel her eyes boring into him, he could feel Brooke's angelic picture staring at him from the desk. How ironic, that he had never set much store by human beings but was quivering under the judgment of a photograph.

"That's not fair. You're taking all the fun out of it," Lucas protested, his voice shaking a little more than he would like. Smiling, Haley slid her legs closed and, crossing them, sat up on the bed.

"Then do me a favor and get rid of her," she snarled, pointing with her eyes at the photograph of his beautiful brunette girlfriend perched on his desk. Sighing, she continued, "If not for me, then do it for you! Look at you, Luke. You're a joke. She's turned you into jelly. What do you want to be, one of those losers who walk down the halls holding hands and smiling? People used to respect you. They feared you and now you're going to throw that all away."

Lucas stared at her, lost in thought. She felt penetrated by his gaze, dirtier than any action could provoke. She liked it, this perverse feeling, and she continued to jeer him on as her words struck a cold blow. The naked truth was dancing in front of him now, making it impossible to ignore.

"Poor Lucas," she simpered, her mannerisms malevolent. "He used to be cool, and now he's just a love-struck faggot. One of the many."

Such a beautiful girl spewed such ugly words, the only person who had ever understood him turning into something else completely. It was as if Haley was an illusion in a fun house, the girl he had wickedly loved for all of these years suddenly twisting into smoke and mirrors as the lights flipped on. Suddenly he had a much better understanding of the whole point of this conversation. Haley's lights had been flipped on before his had, and she watched writhing in agony as he faded before her.

Wordlessly, he left the room. This was too much for him now, and he needed someone to talk it out with. Or maybe just to get high and forget for a little while. Either way, he knew just the place, and it was guaranteed to be open this late.

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Smoke rings wafted lazily above them, creating a hazy environment for the entire room. It was littered with people, all passed out from their various vices. All but one, who worked meticulously at a desk, weighing and rolling what seemed like pounds of pot.

"Mouth, you in here?" Lucas called from the hallway, stepping carefully over the unconscious bodies of his classmates. Marvin McFadden, or as he was known fondly to his friends as Mouth, owned a massive place, and it had taken Lucas quite a while to find him. Some would be amazed that it paid so well, being a drug dealer, but Mouth descended from one of North Carolina's most prominent families. Of course, he had been disowned by the McFadden's, because it certainly did a family no good to have an openly gay drug dealer in the family. What society didn't know was that they had kept on providing for their baby boy long after the emancipation papers were signed.

"Uh huh. To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" the scrawny young man said caustically, without taking his eyes off the joint. Satisfied with his work, he offered it to Luke as he walked in. Seriously considering it for a moment, the blonde waved it away and plopped onto the bed. It was a place Mouth had dreamed of him many a time… secretly of course. It certainly wasn't his fault his best friend was so fucking gorgeous. He and Lucas Scott had been friends since he was in third grade and Luke in first, mainly because neither was very good at making other friends. Since then, they had maintained a strong bond. Mouth was one of the only people in the world privy to Lucas's twisted relationship with his stepsister, which was why the ensuing conversation didn't surprise him in the least.

"Haley," Lucas sighed, and Mouth smiled inadvertently. It was always Haley, in some way, shape or form.

"What did the Ice Princess do this time?"

"She's pissed that I won the bet…"

"So she's refusing to fuck you?" Mouth's eyebrows rose. Haley James had been a bitch from day one, but she had always been a fair bitch.

"No, she offered," Lucas smiled a tiny bit. "But we didn't do it."

"You didn't! Hell Luke, I'd fuck her!" he remarked, and both laughed a little. Funny, but so true.

"She took the fun out of it," Luke whined, before rethinking his words. "I don't even know how she did it. She just royally mind-fucked me."

"Yeah, because that's a first," snorted Mouth.

The words began to spill, the story so far painting itself a picture before Mouth's eyes as Lucas spoke. He actually felt kind of bad for his friend. He thought Luke had it a long time coming that a girl would finally one-up him, but his best friend looked so torn that he couldn't even muster an appreciation for the irony. It was the cliché dilemma, the virgin vs. the bad girl. Well, former virgin, anyway.

"So she's leaving you dangling, while your heart she is mangling?" Mouth intoned.

"I suppose," Lucas remarked grimly.

"You feel like you're going insane; got a fire in your brain; feeling rather like drinking gasoline?" Mouth said, lips curling slightly at a private joke. It was more a statement than a question, but Lucas nodded anyway.

"As a matter of fact--"he began, but Mouth continued.

"Now you toss and you turn, but damn, her cold eyes can burn," Mouth shivered at the memory of all the contemptuous glances he had received from the lovely Miss James. "And then you tried rebounding with Brooke, but now Haley wants you back."

"It seems that way."

"I bet you're thinking 'I'm defeated, I should give up right now,'" Mouth was beginning to get worked up.

"No, not re—," Lucas began.

"Just look on the bright side: you'd fall for her anyhow. Luke, you're dancing her dance. You never stood a chance. You might as well—,"

"Dance a tango to hell?" he chimed in lightly.

"At least you'll have tangoed at all," Mouth nodded.

"So why do I feel like your entire sermon was something out of a Broadway musical?" Lucas teased, laughter coating his voice despise the severity of his situation.

"I may have dipped into my RENT soundtrack earlier today," Mouth said with dignity, blushing furiously. "I wasn't done yet though. There are a few more good lines left in the song."

"Proceed," Lucas waved.

"You've just gotta dance until Diva is through. You pretend to believe her, 'cause in the end you can't leave her. But the end, it will come. Still, you have to play dumb, 'til you're glum and you bum and turn blue."

"Done now?" Lucas interrupted, impatience tearing him at the seams.

"Yeah, sure," Mouth sighed reluctantly, settling back in his chair.

"Well, now that I've gotten the advice of the Tango: Maureen, do you have anything to say directly related to the subject or should we see if Wicked is playing? Maybe Elphaba's got an idea," Lucas quipped.

"It comes down to this, I think," began Mouth seriously, looking strangely businesslike for someone so often stoned. "You and Haley are… you and Haley. You're Lucas and Haley. You're like the seventh wonder of the world—"

"Mouth, there are already seven wonders."

"Fine, the eighth then! Who gives a fuck? Anyway… a bond that strong isn't going to just go away, no matter how many times you fuck each other over. But if you pick someone over her, Haley will never forgive you. You know that. Are you willing to take your chances?"

Are you willing to take that chance?

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Hey guys. Thanks for all the reviews. I was very impressed that I got all those with only one night of having the chapter posted. Keep it up… please please please. Lol. I had a lot of fun with this chapter… mainly because I love RENT. Very much, actually. And the movie just came out.

Those who have read the original Cruel Intentions script will recognize parts of the Lucas/Haley confrontation at the beginning, but I figured since this is a CI-inspired fic, that's okay. Just give credit where credit is due. So this chapter owes props to RENT and Cruel Intentions lol.

Thanks for reading!

Xo Sam