Her mother liked to joke about her being the only adult in the household, the one gifted with mature reasoning and a sense of reality, Lexi called it common sense. She'd always think before she acted, sometimes an unhealthy amount, meanwhile the rest of the people around her usually went with the flow of life, it must be freeing, she thought to herself, but fucking scary.
Fez had called her fearless, and that's how he made her feel, even with all her doubts and self-consciousness, he made her feel like she was living her life for the first time.
She liked observing him, not in a creepy way though, just taking in the way he existed. She knew people insulted his intelligence, but if someone could really see him the way she does, they'd know how meticulous he was with every little thing he did, and how his walls only went down when he was with someone he cared about. Lexi wasn't lying to herself, she knew of the dangers being close to him would imply, but what he did was overshadowed with who he was. She didn't think about time, the future or other people, instead, she focused on their happiness.
Which was kind of difficult at the moment, Cassie had absolutely lost her fucking mind and left the house? To go live with Nate? Not giving a shit about her life, or her family's or Maddy's?!
This time she couldn't blame her mother for going blackout drunk, Lexi covered her with a blanket and kissed her forehead.
"Cassie" her mother muttered.
"I'm here" she lied.
Perhaps it was selfish, but she was thankful she could disconnect from everything going on in her life when she was at rehearsals, it was actually weird since the story was about the people surrounding her, only difference was she could actually do something for them in fiction.
She met Fez a block away from school, he was playing songs they had already added to a joint playlist, such a romantic.
"Hey" he called cheerfully as she entered the car, the evening breeze had reminded her of real life "sister's back yet?"
"No, she's lost her fucking mind and my mom's not doing fine"
"You eaten yet?" He wasn't going to lie about things getting better, she appreciated it more than any false positive wish.
He took them to the nearest McDonald's they could find and ordered food for them and her mother.
"She's gonna be down for a couple more hours, wanna come in?" She invited him as they arrived at her house, it was only fair since they'd only spent time at his place, plus she really wanted to be with him.
"Yeah" he carried the food and waited for her to open the door.
Lexi expected to see her mother napping on the couch, she stared in horror when she realized she wasn't.
"You got food there?" Her mother called from behind them, she began to make her way down the stairs, she looked drunk, but surprisingly cheerful.
"Lexi said to get you extra fries" Fez answered her.
She grinned and instructed him to put in the living room so they could eat, no questions asked about who he was or why was he in her house.
Suze half laying down in one of the couches while they say next to each other on the other, Fez's calmness made Lexi relax, he seemed comfortable enough eating a hamburger and watching a corny show her mother had put on.
"Cassie's said anything?" Her mother asked after a few minutes, good, she was sober-ish.
"Not really" Lexi answered "I guess I'll try to talk with her in school"
"Thank you, honey" Her mother took a deep breath and smiled to her, then at Fez "thanks for the food, umm...?"
"Name's Fezco" he introduced himself "nice to meet you Mrs. Howard. I'm a friend of Lexi's"
"Fezco…" her mother repeated his name "that name sounds familiar"
Lexi frowned; she was pretty sure they had never talked about him.
"Ah, yes" her mother snapped her fingers "are you the one who sent that kid Nate to the hospital?"
"Mom" She tried to step in, Cassie had ratted him when Nate's dad had come to ask them if they saw what happened, she just didn't think their mother would remember.
Fez answered calmly and confident as ever "Yeah, that was me"
Instead of being horrified, Suze poured herself another glass of wine "Well fucking done"
The two of them stared at her mother and couldn't help but to chuckle.
Lexi and Fez cleaned up while Suze went to bed.
"Don't have sex on my couch" her mother shouted on her way up.
Lexi wanted to die, but Fez laughed.
"Sorry about that"
"What you apologizing for? Your mom's cool" he assured her and reached for her hand, gently pulling her towards him, her back to his chest and a kiss on the top of her head "how you feeling?"
"Terrible" she muttered and let herself melt in his arms "can you stay for longer?"
She took him to her bedroom, Cassie's side was a disaster, but she didn't have enough emotional energy to even consider tidying it up.
"Please ignore that" she pointed out.
"Nah you should see my room" he joked.
The sudden realization of what inviting him to her bedroom implied hit her, she hadn't even considered that possibility as the next step in their relationship, all she knew is that it was too soon for her, and that he wouldn't suggest it, the ball was in her court.
She suggested they listened to some music and chill.
They laid down on their backs on her bed, soft music playing on the background while their laughter and conversation filled the room, she didn't notice when it started, but Fez played with her hair.
They laid on their side facing each other, her foot touching his leg, his hand on hers.
"Gotta go" he whispered "Ash's gonna be worried and shit"
"He's gonna hate me even more" she chuckled and caressed his jaw
"It's not you" he promised and kissed her "tryna get some sleep. Listen, your sister… you gotta live your life too, don't be worrying about her too much"
She sighed "I know, but she's my sister, what would you do if Ash got in trouble?"
"Burn the whole place down or some shit, I got you" he answered, "can I say one more thing?"
"Sure"
"Nate's fucking sick and your sister's just in a bad place now. I get you wanting to save her, but she gotta want it too"
