They had seen each other in passing. Every morning Lacey took her run around campus and Danny watched her come and watched her go. Lacey didn't acknowledge him or anyone else. She had been betrayed and she didn't know who was to blame so she pulled her circle tight.
He called and she never answered, he sent her texts and she would reply with short simple responses.
Danny: I got seats for you and Phoebe
Lacey: Can't. Thanks anyway
She didn't attend Friday night's home game and didn't give him the send off she had imagined she would have before his next two week travel block.
He had sent her the start of one of his epic travel texts, half out of habit, half hoping she'd play with him again.
Lacey: Keep it
Danny: I miss you, play with me
Lacey: I wouldn't want to continue disrupting your peace
Danny: Please let me back in
Lacey: I'm here for school
Lacey's parents had refused to replace her paint supplies. She sold some of her clothes to a consignment shop, traded some stuff with fellow art classmates and borrowed supplies from others to fill in the rest. Once she got herself back on track, Lacey decided she would figure out some sort of part time job.
The police had followed their leads and the case remained open, but there was no video footage, no witnesses, nothing. Lacey worked out a situation with Phoebe to transform a corner of their tiny room into her new studio space and had paintings drying everywhere instead of properly stored in the studio.
Lacey leaned on her roommate and the two grew even closer. They shared their ramen and candy, helped each other with projects and generally just made college life suck less for each other.
"It's been almost three weeks." Phoebe said as her and Lacey sat across from each other on their dorm room floor, Lacey laser focused on perfecting Phoebe's makeup.
"Since what?" Lacey sighed, she expected this conversation at some point.
"Since we went out."
"I've been busy, you know that." Lacey blew on Phoebe's eyelid and continued on with blending.
"We were both invited to a Halloween party."
"I'll go." Lacey shrugged.
"Wait, you will?!"
"I'm caught up—well, as much as I can be by this weekend. I'm down, who invited us?"
"Cole." Phoebe gave a hopeful smile.
Lacey nodded, lips darting to the side of her face as she thought this through. Cole was a frat boy, the party would be at the house and all of the people she had been trying to avoid would definitely be there.
"Okay."
"Really? 'Cause we can do something else—"
"No, Phoebs, it's fine. Let's just go and have a good time. You revisiting Cole again, huh?"
Phoebe smiled big, "I think so."
"Is it too slutty?" Phoebe asked as she wrangled the straps to her tiny bee wings.
"You're hot, lady. Relax."
Phoebe's bee costume consisted of a yellow t-shirt, tiny super short black shorts, black suspenders, and yellow and black striped knee socks stuffed inside some sexy high-heeled Mary Janes. All of this plus a pair of tiny iridescent wings and Phoebe was ready to party.
"Yeah, well, I'm not as brave as you—"
"Well it is Halloween, what can I say, I'm in the spirit." Lacey smiled big as they climbed up the steps of the frat house and pushed their way inside.
"Hey!" Cole greeted them dressed as a giant banana, "You're the hottest bee I've ever seen!" He gushed and hugged Phoebe, eyes finally landing on Lacey, "Oh, wow, Lace, you're—"
"A cheerleader, yes." Lacey smiled bigger, adjusting the SU varsity spirit uniform that Jo had snagged for her.
"We're gonna need drinks." Cole decided, guiding the girls to the coolers lining the hallways.
The music consumed all coherent conversation as soon as they stepped away from the door. Most of the party goers had masks or heavy make up on and Lacey couldn't tell who a lot of them were.
"Look who it is, Lacey Porter."
Lacey turned around to see someone much taller than her dressed like a dead fireman, a bloody axe sticking out of his back. She recognized his voice and the green eyes.
"Ouch, Archie—looks like it hurts." Lacey smiled.
"Only until you die, then it's party time!" Archie shrugged, he was drunk, "Danny's somewhere, I'm sure he'll be happy to see you—" He grumbled.
"Okay." Lacey squinted at his icy greeting and chugged the spiked seltzer she had found.
"Hey, sorry to hear about your paintings and shit."
"It's no big deal." Lacey lied, still unsure who had decided they would roadblock her in such a huge and personal way. Would Archie have done that?
She'd never let whoever it was think they had affected her. Lacey didn't trust anyone after that day, not like before. The guard she had so readily let down was now up, way up.
Lacey was no one's fool. She wasn't hiding, but she wasn't going to surround herself with likely backstabbing frat jocks either. Tonight was an exception. Parties were perfect stress relievers, and lord knows she had no money of her own for booze so win-win, she thought.
Lacey found a spot in the large room at the back of the house to dance. The song was one of her favorites and she found plenty of willing participants to rub all over.
At one point, Lacey became aware of someone dancing behind her in tandem, much tighter than she preferred. She was just about to turn around to investigate further but her dance partner was way ahead of her.
"Cheerleader, interesting choice." Danny said, his face hovering near her neck, lips skimming her ear.
Lacey felt her body react before her mind caught up. Danny swayed with her, hands off, in that rhythm he knew and missed terribly. Lacey spun around to face him.
"Scariest thing I could think of." Lacey smiled.
Danny stared back, her dimples and her hair pulled back into a ponytail with an obnoxious orange cheer bow doing things to Danny he couldn't control.
Lacey's eyes dropped all over Danny.
"Are you, a shirtless fireman?"
Lacey shamelessly checked him out, drinking in Danny's fine body. She was more thirsty than she anticipated.
It was one thing to feel his presence and hear his voice after all this time, but something else entirely to see so much of his body while surrounded by all these people. It felt like a part of her was naked, she didn't want to share this view.
"Indeed. The team, we're all firemen tonight—"
"Umm, I'm pretty sure Cole is a giant banana—" Lacey nodded.
Danny laughed, "Yeah, he missed the text." His smile was dazzling, happy, "It's nice to see you."
"Dannyyyy!"
Danny's attention was pulled to Regina, who was dressed like cat woman, complete full latex bodysuit and high heeled boots.
"Hello there." He greeted her, taking a breath as Regina connected with Lacey—and her costume.
"Wow, Lacey, I didn't realize they made our uniform in a size that would fit you—"
"Hey—" Danny tried to stop this from happening again.
"No, you're right. If you actually have an ass, this thing does not fit right. Luckily, you don't have that problem."
Danny straight up walked away from them. He was done trying to mediate them and wanted nothing to do with their constant bickering.
"I was trying to come up with ways to make your life with Danny more difficult, but it seems like you're doing great all by yourself." Regina knocked her drink against Lacey's, "Cheers."
"Was one of those ways to destroy my property?"
"That night I was trying to get your seconds, remember? I'm not wasting a second of my life on you."
"You're talking to me right now, genius—"
"I'm mad at you."
"Oh yeah? Why's that?"
"You called off your deal with Desai and yet you're still controlling him. If you're going to let him go, let him go for Christ's sake!"
"What are you walking about?"
"Are you still together or not?"
"We were never together."
"Look, all I know is, he's still not giving it up to anyone. Please push that man one way or the other. Please."
"It's not my job to manage that man's junk." This was some tea. Lacey took another sip and left to check on Phoebe.
"What's the buzz?" Lacey giggled to her friend as she stood at one end of an old door being used as an epic beer pong table.
"Shhh! I'm winning, don't distract me!" Phoebe swayed, now wearing someone's fireman helmet, "If I can get this last one, Scott has to drop his fire pants—"
"What happened to Cole?"
"Pretty sure he's getting his banana sucked by some cheerleader, who knows."
Scott finished his turn yielding no more ground. Phoebe did a little dance and threw ball one of three, nicking the edge of the last cup and sending it flying down the hallway. The second ball smacked Scott right in his bare chest and back toward Phoebe. Phoebe shifted from one foot to the other and flicked her wrist, sending her last ball straight into the last cup.
Everyone around them began screaming and Scott pounded the cup of beer before someone else rambunctiously flipped the table. A chant began.
"Drop 'em! Drop 'em! Drop 'em!"
Scott flipped his suspenders off and dropped his fire pants to the ground revealing grey boxer-briefs and a belt of colorful condoms hanging around his waist.
"A fireman is always prepared!" Scott declared before curling his finger at Phoebe and boosting her up over his shoulder.
"Phoebe—" Lacey called after her but her voice was lost in the boisterous crowd.
Danny was coming down the staircase as Scott headed up. He connected with Lacey for a moment who was not focused anywhere else than on her roommate as she was carried like a prize over Scott's shoulder.
"Hey, whoa, whoa, aren't you allergic to bees?" Danny scolded and pried Phoebe off Scott's shoulder.
"C'mon man, she's into it—" Scott growled.
"Not her." Danny said firmly and escorted an intoxicated Phoebe back toward Lacey.
"Laceeyyy—" Phoebe pouted, "Danny's a cock-block."
Lacey smiled at her friend and accepted her random hug, looking at Danny with great appreciation.
"Thank you."
Danny gave a nod, "Stay with her, she's a target now."
"Phoebe, love, there you are. I made you a drink!"
Tyler handed Phoebe a pretty blue drink with a straw that Danny immediately intercepted before she could drink it.
"Danny!" She protested, forgetting why as soon as she said his name.
"What flavor is this, T?" Danny challenged.
"It's blue, I don't know—"
"You take a sip then, let me know what flavor."
Tyler sighed making no move to sip it. He tried to take the drink back.
"No, no, no—this is my drink now. Go find something else to do, understand?"
Lacey watched Danny pitch the drink into the tree pot next to him.
"Let's get her out of here." Danny suggested.
Lacey agreed and they sandwiched her in a slow walk out the front door.
"Cole invited me, I'm allowed at the party—" Phoebe thought she was being kicked out.
"I know Phoebs." Lacey tried to soothe her.
"Cole changed his mind though I guess."
"What's she talking about?" Danny asked Lacey.
"Cole is otherwise occupied tonight."
"Is he with a guy? 'Cause I think maybe I turn them gay—" Phoebe's words were getting harder to understand.
"Jesus, how many drinks did she have?" Danny was concerned.
"I don't know."
Lacey grimaced at how drunk Phoebe really was. Her mouth was just hanging open, drool stringing off and down her shirt. Lacey knew what typically happened next.
"Guys, I think—"
Phoebe puked right there, Lacey not in the least bit pleased to see their dollar store dinner for a second time.
"Shit." Lacey grabbed Phoebe's hair out of the way and jumped back so it wouldn't splatter on her feet.
Danny was surprisingly caring, standing by Phoebe's side and rubbing her back. Lacey handed Danny Phoebe's pseudo-ponytail and pulled the top of her cheer costume off so Phoebe could wipe her face on it. Lacey knew if Danny had been wearing a shirt he probably would have done the same thing.
Despite their disgusting situation, Danny couldn't keep his eyes off of Lacey's toned body just out in the open wearing a sports bra and a tiny cheer skirt. The puking happened to someone every weekend, seeing Lacey half naked did not.
"Let's go to my place, she can't make it another mile back to yours." Danny offered.
Lacey and Danny managed to get Phoebe to Danny's house. He was a pro and pulled out an air mattress on the tile floor in his kitchen directly outside his half bathroom.
"You've done this before." Lacey giggled as she helped him complete inflating the mattress.
"Once or twice." Danny nodded.
Lacey helped Phoebe into some of Danny's pajamas and got her all cozy before she passed out.
"Thanks for this." Lacey said sincerely.
"It's nothing. Happens all the time over in this neighborhood." He smiled.
"I'll set up here on the couch if that's okay, so I can keep an eye on her."
Danny reached up and straightened her cheer bow before fluffing up her ponytail. He brought his hands under each of her cheeks and cupped Lacey's beautiful face.
"Please don't stay on the couch." Danny licked his lips, his face set, serious.
Lacey involuntarily licked her lips too, "Where do you want me?" She asked, words dripping with sexual tension.
"In my bed." He rested his face against hers like he had lost the ability to hold his head up on his own, "Please."
Phoebe took this moment to throw up heartily in the trashcan Danny had set up by her head. Lacey winced a little and they both giggled. Talk about a mood killer.
"Another night, but I'm glad you're back." Lacey admitted.
"Me too."
"A little bird told me you haven't been spending time with any of your friends lately. Any truth to that?" Lacey was curious.
Danny shrugged, "Just trying something new."
"Yeah?" Lacey draped her arms around Danny's shoulders and played with his hair.
"Mmhm." He hummed simply.
"What's that?"
"It's called, I wasn't ready to quit you." Danny kissed her.