Hi everyone! This story is really old and I have changed so many things about in the past week when I started writing again. I haven't watched Twisted in years and I have only been writing based on some of the character backgrounds we have. Some things may seem inconsistent but know that I have a clearer vision of this story than I had a few years ago.

All of the characters are imperfect and this will get pretty angsty this chapter. I hope you are enjoying this story that I have been writing for myself over some time. I wanted to share it in case anyone else wasn't over Twisted like I wasn't.

Lacey pulled up to Green Grove stressed about her exam. She really needed to get a good grade on this test so her mom would get off her back. Her dad called and said that if they didn't see a change in her she would have to go stay with him in Seattle. She talked to Danny on the phone for a few hours last night but was too nervous to tell him about what her parents said to her. She wanted to focus on this test.

If she did well she could tell her mom that she was dating Danny. Her mom loved Danny, but she did think he was reckless. Lacey didn't know how she would react if she said they were actually dating, but she hated lying to her mom about this. She and Danny agreed there would be no secrets this time. She already was getting birth control without telling her mom. Judy Porter was a snoop and she would find out eventually. Lacey wanted to make sure it was on her terms.

She saw Danny's car park in his spot and he emerged with his hair already trying to blow in the wind. The fall weather was here and Green Grove turned into a windy muddy mess this season. So many events were coming up for the fall. The Fall Festival was creeping up and Lacey still had to get a dress. She made a mental note to plan a time to go shopping with Regina and Sarita.

Danny's passenger door opened and out walked Jo. Lacey rolled her eyes. Of course, she asked him for a ride to school. She knew I wasn't going to pick her up anymore, she thought. Lacey wanted to scream in the car but held back. She pulled her mirror down to make sure she was ready to show her face.

"Lacey Yvonne Porter. You are going to grab this test by the balls and ignore the blonde-haired mess you used to call your friend. Go out there and be a bad bitch," she proclaimed out loud. She needed a pep talk in order to calm down and face the day.

She fixed her lip gloss and hair and flipped the mirror back up. Noticing her boyfriend approaching her car. Jo had already walked into school.

He knocked on the window with a grin and Lacey grabbed her bag and stepped out. She slammed her door and immediately felt his hand on her waist before she turned to face him.

"Hi Danny," she said curtly and started speed walking toward the front doors. Danny jogged a bit to keep up with her, "I see you brought our dear friend Jo to school today?"

"Yeah… she said she wouldn't ask again. Her dad had to go to the station early this morning," Danny replied and Lacey scoffed and continued avoiding his eye contact. He went forward enough to stop her in her tracks, "I know you guys aren't in a great place right now but I'm not going to box her out."

"That's what you're supposed to do, Danny! As a boyfriend you have to stick with me: your girlfriend. How am I supposed to know she didn't give you a car handjob on your way here? She was probably wanting to," Lacey whispered sharply. Danny looked like he was going to laugh in her face which made her push him to the side and continue walking.

"You don't actually believe that, Lacey."

Lacey reached the front door and Danny grabbed the door and opened it for her before she could. She wanted to slam it in his face, "Thank you."

She quickly tried to rush down the hall to chemistry but heard Danny call out to her before she was out of earshot.

"Good luck on your test! I love you!" He yelled down the hall. Lacey's cheeks felt hot after hearing that. Half the school probably heard that. She turned around and gave him a small smile, which she felt was nice of her to allow.

Danny watched as she turned down a different hallway and made his way to class.

He didn't mind telling her he loved her in front of a lot of people. He was happy he could be cheesy out loud with her. Danny wished he knew how to get Jo and Lacey to make up and move past this whole thing.

"Do you think she'll talk to me ever again?" He heard Jo say. She was leaning against her locker with her arms crossed.

Danny made his way closer to her, "Yes. She's just dealing with a lot right now anyway. School has kept her stressed out."

Danny assured his friend. He was surprised Jo liked him because he always saw them as friends. He wondered if he did anything to lead her on but Lacey helped him realize his availably to her could seem like he was interested.

Danny never told Jo he was interested in Lacey. When Lacey stopped talking to him the three weren't able to hang out together and he knew Jo thought something was off. It would be impossible for her to think they were okay. But he did spend more time with Jo during that time since he needed that familiarity in his life. They weren't close for over a month, Jo had to know something was off.

"I miss her. I feel stupid about what I said. I know you guys have a good relationship I was just being petty," Jo admitted. She did feel stupid and guilty. Lacey was her best friend and she was always there for her.

"Give her time. You guys will be friends again. You know what Lacey's like when she's mad. If she didn't care about you she would be sugar sweet and fake about everything. The fact that she's ignoring you is a good sign," Danny gave her a small smile which Jo mocked, "Calm down, Masterson. You'll be okay again soon."

AFTER THE EXAM

"God, I need a drink," Regina said as she and Lacey walked out of the exam classroom. Regina tried to cheat off of the kid next to her but even she could tell all of his answers were wrong. Lacey, however, was feeling pretty good about it. She was horrified that she had a false sense of security about it, but she was trying to remain positive.

"Me too. Maybe at lunch we can go off-campus and smoke," Lacey offered. Her friend sighed and pouted.

"I need something stronger than weed. It's not enough to get my mind off of this dumb test. Maybe we should suck Mr. Dawkins' dick! He wouldn't be able to turn down both of us," Regina said excitedly. Lacey laughed at this and raised an eyebrow at her friend.

"Like you haven't already tried that. Your last resort is to do your work, Reg," Lacey reached her locker and placed the chemistry book to the back. She didn't need to deal with that again until the next test. She was happy she could be starting her junior year on a high note and wanted to keep the momentum going so she could be honest with her parents.

More than anything right now she needed Danny.

"You're right. I'll see you at lunch, I spot that Rico kid and maybe he can sneak and change my grade on that test," Regina said and scurried down the hall.

Lacey grabbed her books for English class and spotted her boyfriend talking to some of the other soccer boys. She smiled and waved at him as Danny quickly ended his conversation and strolled up to her. They both leaned forward for a peck as Danny's hand went to tilt her chin up to him.

"You still mad at me, Lace?" he asked with a small pout. Lacey pretended to think about it.

'I actually forgot about that, but now that you reminded me…" she started pulling away from him but he moved his arms to tightly hold her close to him. He gave her another small kiss and pulled away to get a look at her beautiful face.

"How was the test?" he asked.

"It actually wasn't that bad. I know I passed," she answered and Danny gave her another deep kiss.

"See? I told you it wouldn't be that bad. You are great at chemistry," he said in between more kisses. Lacey smiled and placed her hands on his chest, "How are we going to celebrate?"

"I was going to ask if you had plans during lunch. We could head by my house and smoke a little—"

"I'm down. We can meet at my car and head over there then," Danny said. The bell rang and they walked hand in hand to class.

LUNCH

"I love weed," Lacey giggled and laid backward on her bed. She felt on top of the world. So much better than she did this morning. She truly was a bad bitch.

Danny leaned out her window to blow the smoke from the joint out. He didn't want to stink up her room even though she didn't seem to mind.

"You want any more?" he asked walking towards his blissful girlfriend. She sat up and took a hit as he held it out for. She gave him a grin before laying back on the bed. Danny tapped the joint out on her ashtray so he could join her on her plush bed.

He sat above her and placed kisses on her neck. He nipped her collarbone and Lacey let out a small scream. They laughed together and she pulled his face over to kiss him on the lips. Danny sank his body lower so they were flush against each other.

They kissed slowly and intimately. Their mouths opening to feel the other's tongue. Lacey wondered if they had enough time for a quickie before they had to go back to school.

Suddenly, they heard the front door slam and they both shot up.

"What the hell is anyone doing home right now?" She questioned and looked out the window to see her mom's car parked right behind Danny's.

"Oh, shit—" Lacey was about to tell Danny to hide when her door flew open. An angry Judy Porter standing in her doorway. Danny saw flashbacks from when his parents broke in on them having sex. At least this time they were fully clothed. He just wishes they weren't stoned.

"Lacey Porter. What the hell is going on here? Is that weed?" Judy yelled. Clara popped her head out from behind her mom.

"I knew it was Danny's car!" Clara said proudly until she read the room. The younger sister quickly ran away and slammed her room door shut.

"Mom, um, what are you doing home right now?" Lacey said, her stomach dropping. She was going to be in so much trouble.

"Clara was sick and her school asked me to pick her up. Why are you home, young lady?" Judy wasn't backing down. Danny dumbly sat on the bed looking between his girlfriend and her livid mom. He didn't know what he should do in the situation.

"It's lunch time," Danny said smally. Judy turned her attention to him. Shit.

"Did you bring that stuff over here, Danny? Why would you smoke during lunch? Were you guys planning on skipping class for the rest of the day?"

"No! We were going to go back! I swear," Lacey answered for him.

"You were going to get in the car high off your asses? Are you two idiots? I'm calling your mother.

Lacey, I thought you were making smarter decisions this year? Your dad is not going to be happy about this."

"I asked Danny to come over and smoke, mom. It wasn't his fault you don't have to call Karen," Lacey begged.

Judy turned and glared at the couple, "Go downstairs. I'm calling her now."

Lacey's mom walked away and down the hall and the couple could hear her on the phone.

They slowly made their way downstairs without speaking. Danny thought it was funny but Lacey looked completely pale and anxious. He knew it wasn't a great situation but they were only going to get grounded.

"Lacey, it's going to be okay," Danny started.

"No, Danny. It's not. She's going to call my dad. They are totally on my case this year and aren't allowing any mistakes. I have to get good grades and stop having parties. I can't be smoking or drinking," Lacey remembered the conversation she had with her mom last week when she found out through social media that Lacey threw another party when she was out of town.

"Lacey! I need to talk to you!" Judy Porter called from the bottom of the stairs. She was pissed. She was scrolling through Facebook and saw a picture posted on Lacey's friend Regina's page. She was smiling with a group of kids holding beers and lacey was one of them. She could tell it was their pool and the photo was time-stamped of the weekend Judy went on a business trip to Boston. She knew Lacey had parties when she was gone but she was never able to really prove it. Seeing Regina's photo was the last straw. She wondered why her daughter was partying so much and making these bad decisions. The entire summer she was at parties almost every week. She didn't have a job and stopped going to horseback riding. She was becoming a person that Judy didn't recognize. And it needed to stop.

Lacey trudged down the stairs annoyed that her mom made her get off of the phone with Danny.

"What's up?" Lacey asked.

"Who are all of these kids in my house. DRINKING?" Judy demanded, pushing her laptop into Lacey's hands. Lacey had to squint to remember the picture or when it was from. She saw herself and saw the bottle of wine she had carried throughout the party. She could easily tell it was her house.

"Mom that's just some friends that came over while you were away! You said I could have people over and Clara was out at her friend's place. It's no big deal, I promise!" Lacey explained. She stuttered over some of her words and felt her mom's eyes bore into her.

"You're a bad liar. Just like your father," Judy stated and slammed her laptop shut, "you're grounded. I want you to call your dad tomorrow and tell him about your little party. Where did you get the alcohol? You're only seventeen!"

Lacey thought of the best lie she could. Who could she blame this on?

"I want to see your phone," Judy commanded and held out her hand.

"MOM! No! That's my phone it's private!" Lacey screamed. Clara came into the room wondering what all of the yelling was about.

"Now! Young lady!"

"No! I refuse. You can't look."

Lacey didn't know how many incriminating things could be on her phone. She definitely had nudes, drugs, alcohol. She had a number of dealers in the area. She has texts to all of her close friends about sneaking out or going to parties. She would be sent to rehab or a nunnery if her parents saw her phone.

Judy crossed her arms and stared at her daughter. She knew it wasn't right to ask for her phone but she didn't know what else to do. Lacey always did well in school and was safe with her friends. Judy knew she drank sometimes but she went through a lot.

The divorce put a lot of stress on her daughters and she felt guilty for changing their lives so quickly.

"Fine. Talk to your father tomorrow and he will decide your punishment. As of right now, you are grounded. You will go to school, the library, or student council meetings," Judy laid out her demands and Lacey nodded. She would prefer anything over giving her mom free reign on her phone.

Lacey threw herself back on her living room couch and Danny sat politely next to her. Lacey sighed loudly and threw her face into her hands. Danny thought she was crying.

"I'm so dead," she groaned.

"You're fine. What's the worst that could happen?" Danny asked trying to cheer her up.

"I could be sent to Seattle to live with my dad."

Danny stared at her blankly, not sure if he heard her correctly. Her parents were going to send her away? During her junior year of high school. It sounded like some bullshit Danny's parents would do. Lacey hasn't pulled half the shit he has.

"You saw the worst of my parent's issues before you left for Arizona over the summer. They filed for divorce at the end of May and it wasn't that big of a surprise because they were arguing for months. They filed for divorce before they even told us that they were thinking of separating. We were confused and worried about them and how quickly these decisions were made. It was all over when my dad was moving out and finally admitted to Clara and me that he was gay.

My mom wanted to hide it because she was embarrassed and she thought she 'turned him gay', or at least that's what she thought everyone was saying behind her back. She went over our family's statement' carefully which is the story you and Jo heard. Hell, all of Green Grove believed it."

"I thought your dad made bad investments so your mom was sick of him taking all of her money," Danny said, remembering what Lacey told him when he was in Arizona. She laughed a little and looked up at her boyfriend.

Lacey didn't have the chance to talk to Danny about any of this. Jo knew some of it but after he left it wasn't as easy to get advice or help from her best friend. And when he came back for her birthday they only grew apart more. She needed him during that time.

Danny made a lot of mistakes during the summer but Lacey was no saint. She didn't sleep around like Danny but she filled the void inside her with partying. Getting drunk and not caring about any repercussions. Trying cocaine and MDMA. She did a lot of things she wasn't proud of but they were good distractions for a while. She knew she wasn't perfect and she told herself every day that she wasn't a good person. She didn't want to be a good person because she didn't think it was possible. No one was good or trustworthy. People will lie to you and leave you in the dust.

Her self-confidence was skin deep. She didn't need people to like her, she needed them to know that they couldn't fuck with her.

She didn't want Danny to fuck with her. She was pissed that she loved him, even after he walked out on her and slept with every girl with a pulse. He fueled her partying, binge-drinking, and unhealthy behaviors.

She knew she couldn't blame him for it all because he tried. But she could blame her parents. She could blame Green Grove for chewing her and spitting her out.

Lacey stood up from the couch and began pacing. She felt too many memories coming back to her at once and the weed was making her paranoid. Danny rose to calm her and ground her.

"Lacey—hey, it's me," he pulled her face forward so he could look in her sad, dark eyes. Danny wanted to take all the pain she was feeling and beat it to a pulp. He pulled her into his arms tightly. He felt her begin to shake and cry and knew he should've been there for her to hold her and take care of her. To wipe her tears as she went through everything with her family. All he did was add liquor to the fire.

"Danny, I'm the idiot here. I did it all to myself. I should've just gotten a fucking therapist instead of doing anything I could think of in order to act out. In order to feel something other than anger," she cried and tried to push Danny away. He just held onto her tighter.

"You're not an idiot. I love you, Lacey," Danny whispered and kissed the top of her head, "I'm here for you now. This is where I should've been this whole time."

Danny pulled away to wipe the tears off her eyes. He placed a deep kiss on her lips. It made Lacey cry even more knowing that she could be losing him. Her only source of comfort.

"Danny, Lacey."

The couple pulled apart and looked at the matriarch in front of them. Her tone was sullen but Lacey could tell she was still angry.

"When did this start?" Judy asked and motioned for them to sit down on the couch. She sat near them in one of the single chairs.

"A few weeks ago," Lacey answered quietly. This was the worst possible way to introduce their relationship to her mom. Judy's facial expression didn't change and she gave Lacey a knowing look. She looked like she was connecting the dots when it came to understanding her daughter. Judy knew she hadn't been doing a good job helping her daughters through this transition.

"Your father and I think you should move to Seattle at the end of the semester," Judy said quietly. Lacey looked at her in horror, "I know that's not what you want to hear but we think a change of scenery is exactly what you need right now. He's getting in touch with a few therapists you can meet with while you're over there."

"Mom, please. I can't leave Green Grove this is my home!" Lacey cried. Danny felt frozen. Did she just say Lacey was leaving? He could barely hear any of their back and forth as he realized he could be losing the woman he loves.

"Lacey, I can't keep track of you. And now you have a boyfriend none of us knew about? I looked in your room and found birth control pills. When did you start birth control? Are you having unprotected sex?"

Lacey opened her mouth to answer but Judy wasn't done.

"All you do is keep secrets and act recklessly. I won't deal with this anymore. It's your father's turn to deal with you."

"You're just going to send me away because I couldn't be honest with you? Because I wasn't secure enough to tell you the truth about my feelings? Whose fault is that? You're the one that lies about every single thing and you expect me to talk to you and trust you?" Lacey screamed. Danny had never seen her that angry. She was always calm and collected and he could feel how hurt she was. Her voice was breaking in between words.

Judy was crying too now, "I'm sorry that I ruined your life because your father wanted to fuck Clara's coach! I'm sorry if I work my ass off every day to make sure you can buy all of your expensive clothes so you can show off to the rich kids in this town! Work on your priorities kid," Judy stormed away from the conversation.

Lacey ran to the front door and slipped her sneakers on, "Danny, can we go?"

Danny quickly stood up and they rushed out of the house and into his car.

They didn't say much on the way to the Desai house. They both gave up on going back to school at this point and Lacey could care less. They pulled into Danny's garage and they were both relieved to know neither of his parents was home. Danny led Lacey into the house and she immediately turned to his dad's office.

"Uh, Lace? Where are you going?" Danny said.

"Whiskey! Double malt!" Lacey said and pulled out the bottle from under Vikram Desai's desk.

"How did you remember where he kept that?" Danny said with a slight laugh. He didn't want to make any jokes yet. Not until he could read her emotions a bit better. Danny didn't want to push her but he wanted to keep her safe.

She revealed more than she ever has about her life during their time apart. Danny realized he never got more details on how she was feeling about her parents and life in general. She took a deep swig and didn't wince.

"Geez, you're starting to act like my parents," he tried to lighten the mood and took the bottle from her. Danny allowed himself a sip before he put it back on the desk.

"Please don't mention the P-word right now," Lacey said and sat in the luxurious desk chair, "Do you think your parents would let me move in?"

Danny laughed and she gave him a small grin. It was all she could muster.

Danny leaned on the desk so he could get a better look at her, "Probably. They would lock our doors so we couldn't canoodle in the middle of the night."

Lacey smiled and stoop up in front of. She wrapped her arms around his waist and planted a kiss on his neck. She stood on her toes to continue placing small kisses from the base of his neck and behind his ear. Danny's hands went behind her head to tilt her up so their lips could meet. He tastes the whiskey on her breath and the salt of her tears.

He deepened the kiss and held her face gently, trying to offer her as much comfort as he could during this time.

He was terrified that Lacey had to leave but he knew he would do anything in his power to keep her here with him. He needed to protect her in all the ways he didn't before.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there, Lacey," Danny breathed. He felt her face get wet again from tears and kissed them away. He pulled apart from her to look in her eyes.

Her deep brown eyes were red and swollen. He could see the redness on her cheeks and nose. Some of the makeup she was wearing came off and Danny could see more of the pain she tried so hard to cover up.

Lacey leaned in the back of the tire swing feeling on top of the world. She was at the old treehouse she shared with Danny and Jo. However, it was only Tyler and Jo at this moment. They were smoking and Tyler was doing lines of coke.

Lacey tried it before but hated it. It made her paranoid and though everyone told her it would make her feel happy she just remembered things that made her depressed. Lacey never admitted or accepted the idea that she could be depressed because she had no reason to be. She had a lot of friends and a loving but dysfunctional family.

Lacey had her close friend, Jo, and Danny. She grew closer to Regina during the time that she wasn't able to handle being around Danny and had to take a step back from her friendship with Jo. She spent so much time alone with Danny over the past few months and now they barely spoke. Sex changed everything or them and she thought she would never do it again. The feelings of hopelessness and betrayal played through her mind whenever she saw a handsome guy or mustered up the courage to go on a real date.

Danny had obviously moved from her and she barely remembered the summer because every weekend she felt like she heard about Danny with a different girl. She wanted to take up her attention with other things, like weed and alcohol. Maybe cocaine. She had about a week until her dad officially moved out and she wanted to let loose. She knew Scott's party was coming up but she couldn't wait.

Tyler and Jo sat at the bench near the treehouse with Tyler's arm around her. Lacey knew they were hooking up but Jo wasn't interested in him. She liked the attention and Jo was just as depressed as Lacey felt the past few weeks. Lacey didn't ask why.

"Tyler, do you have anything stronger?" Lacey drawled as she took a hit from the joint the three of them were sharing. Tyler's eyes lit up and he made his way over to the brunette.

"Of course, Queen Porter. I was in the city last weekend and picked up some of the finest powder in the state," Tyler explained. He always had a hookup for drugs and alcohol. He went to jail a few times but his parents were able to pay off the cops. Green Grove PD was highly unethical and they loved the rich parents with naughty kids.

"Coke?" Lacey asked unsure if she wanted to try it again.

"Lacey, don't do it. Danny was telling me how that shit can mess you up," Jo piped in. She was laying on the bench now, watching the trees sway in the wind.

Lacey flinched when she heard Danny's name and Tyler took that as a cue to pull out a small vial of white powder.

The girl sat up as he prepped it in front of her, placing the dust in a small line on his phone. He held it to Lacey on one knee and gave her a twenty-dollar bill to roll up.

Lacey easily rolled the bill and didn't think anymore before snorting the entire line. Her nose immediately burning. A few seconds later she felt the rush and her brain felt like it was expanding in her head. She sneezed a little and Tyler laughed.

Lacey started to laugh too as the boy placer a line for himself and snorted it. Lacey couldn't stop laughing and stood up to stretch.

The feeling was unreal. She was on top of the world, the true queen of Green Grove.

"Why didn't I like this at first? It's fucking fantastic," she screamed and Jo groaned. She turned to look at her friends that were standing and jumping. They were speaking so quickly and loudly it annoyed Jo.

She knew Lacey was hiding things from her but she stopped asking. Lacey has never been open about her feelings and she knew it was something she learned from her mother. Jo wasn't an open book either but she knew how much Danny would balance both of them out. They never really told her why they stopped hanging out and Jo assumed it was because Lacey had new friends.

She still spent time with Lacey and they felt normal most days, but Lacey was more adventurous with drugs and partying when in the past she was never interested in that kind of thing.

"Lacey, get a little coke in you and you're ready to party," Tyler snickered and wrapped his arms around Lacey's waist. Dancing to music that wasn't playing. Jo rolled her eyes with jealousy and wondered why every guy seemed to be interested in her.

Lacey pushed him away from her knowing his history with Jo, but continued to Dance and throw her head back and forth, "A party? Where? We should go! Jo get up!"

Jo sat up straight and stared annoyingly at her friend. She was too high to go to a social event like this and didn't want to go out with two people high on coke.

"Lacey, wherever you are there's a party," Tyler laughed but Lacey was already trying to grab both of them to find a party somewhere. She started to sprint out of the treehouse and through the woods. She didn't hear Tyler and Jo behind her but didn't care, she wanted to party, or see her horses. She wasn't completely sure at this point.

"Wait— Lacey!" she heard Jo call but continued sprinting until she lost her balance and fell. She inspected her body and saw nothing wrong, she only ripped the shorts she was wearing. Jo and Tyler caught up to her and they helped her off the ground, "You okay, porter?" Tyler asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" she said and laughed and stood up, brushing the two off of her. She didn't feel like being touched and wanted some more coke. She knew she probably had enough but didn't want to lose this feeling. She barely thought about Danny for the past ten minutes and she wanted to keep it that way. She ran up more until the three of them made it to the street and she looked both ways before trying to walk to Tyler's car.

"Sorry, but I can't be driving right now. My parents would murder me if I got another DUI. Let's just walk and find the first party we can," Tyler offered, trying to pull Lacey from the car.

"That's one of the worst ideas you have ever had, Tyler," Jo spat, annoyed that he got her friend so high wand was egging her on. She thought about calling Danny for backup but she wasn't sure how Lacey would react, "Lacey, let's walk home. You want me to sleep over at your place?"

Lacey stared at the car then at the quiet street they were standing on. She looked around becoming more aware of her surroundings and recognizing the town she has always lived.

There were so many changes over the past few months it was good to be somewhere consistently even if the comfort was only physical. Her life was a wreck and her heart was broken. She felt the wave of sadness come back to bite her in the ass. She was sick of it all and yearned for a way out.

Jo and Tyler continued to speak at her but Lacey couldn't hear them. She just focused on the cars around her and moved to walk towards them. To follow the lights she saw pointing to where she needed to be.

Lacey has never been suicidal and she doubted she was at that moment. She felt herself going down a drug-infused spiral and she wasn't ready to snap out of it. To walk away and go home and sleep in her bed, waking up to a fatherless household and an overworked mother. She didn't want to go see her friends and miss the one person she felt she could be truly close to.

Lacey walked from the passenger side of the car and into oncoming traffic. She heard cars beeping at her both ways of the two-lane street. All she heard was them and not the shouts of Jo as she felt Tyler's arm trying to pull her to safety.

She wanted to follow the lights until she saw a truck coming towards her and it beeping incessantly, only willing Lacey to stay in her spot. He was only a few yards away until she felt swept off her feet and thrown to the grassy area to the side of the road. Her friend falling on top of her sobbing and hugging her while Tyler stared at them with his eyes wide and hand stressfully running through his hair.

Lacey realized she never saw him look that scared in her life and she never saw her friend sobbing uncontrollably and hugging her. She saw the severity of the situation but couldn't bring herself to care.

After a few minutes had passed Jo had tired herself out and Tyler sat next to them glaring at his shoes. The three of them didn't speak as they sat on the grassy patch and Lacey continued to watch traffic. All of the vehicles had somewhere they were going, a destination in mind. Lacey wondered where she would be in the next year.

Would she and Clara visit her father and his boyfriend in Seattle? Would she rekindle her friendship? Would she find a will to live and care about the future? She didn't know and didn't know if she cared because at that moment she just wanted some more powder.