A/N: I'VE CHANGED A LOT OF EVENTS FROM LIFE UNEXPECTED. WHAT HAPPENED TO LUX IN THAT SHOW IS VERY DIFFERENT THAN WHAT HAPPENED HERE. AND ALL DRASTIC OCCURANCES THAT OCCUR IN THIS FIC SERVE A PURPOSE.

Lux's POV

I needed to get out of Trey's sight as soon as possible… So when Eric texted me, I couldn't help but jump at the idea of leaving their house. It was either that or feeling like I had to vomit for hours… And I surprisingly did have a good time with Eric that night, even though all we did was play cards. He was a nice guy… and after what Bug did to me, I was not going to search for someone else like him.

When I told Valerie I wanted to go out after dinner, she was pretty cool about it. She even offered to give me a ride, but I thought it was best not to ask for a ride to a bar. That would have been the dumbest move ever. I ended up making some excuse up about wanting the exercise. And just like I remembered, she told me to be back before midnight.

Now, that I can do.

"Do you wanna tell me where we're going?" I ask Eric the second he pulls his car out of the driveway.

"It's a surprise," he says matter-of-factly.

"You know… I don't know about you but most women hate surprises."

"Well, you should've thought about that before you slept over a stranger's house last night and got into his car a few minutes ago."

"Well, I was drunk last night."

"So you were schnookered?," he asks with a smile.

I furrow my eyebrows at him, "Huh?"

He looks embarrassed for a second. "Oh, uh, I'm sorry. That's how we describe people who are ridiculously drunk in Minnesota."

"Minnesota?" I smile. "What? You're not from here?"

"No."

"But you talk so… normal?" I ask in confusion.

"So… people who are not from here are abnormal?" he asks rhetorically.

"Oh God no! That came out wrong. I'm always doing that," I shake my head.

"It's okay. I'm just kidding. I get what you mean."

"Oh," I answer stupidly.

"Yeah, well Minnesota isn't in the south so—"

I chuckle, "Well, I was never really good with geography," I admit. And that's when I realize that he pulls into a parking lot. "Uh," my face straightens as I look around, "…which is why I'm going to just go ahead and ask… Where the hell are we?"

"You still don't know?" he questions.

"Why would I ask if I didn't know?"

Eric smiles and shuts off his engine. "Come on," he says as he opens his car door and gets out. I instinctively do the same.

"Eric… um, has anyone ever told you that you're the strangest person alive?" I ask as I follow him down the street, all the while considering stopping and making a run for it in the opposite direction.

"Nope."

"Uhuh," I mumble in disbelief, "And you do know that you surprising me with whatever it is that you're surprising me with is the exact opposite of making me feel like I'm in control, right?"

"Nope. Wanna know why?"

"Sure," I nod.

"Because you don't have to follow me."

"Excuse me?" I question.

"You heard me. You showed up at my apartment…got into my car… and now you're following me even though you have no idea where the heck I'm going. You could have chosen to stay in the car or forced me to take you home, but you didn't."

"Well, should I have?" I ask with a small hint of fear in my voice. But all in all, I was more confused than anything.

"That's still up to you," he says as he starts to speed up his walking.

"Now, you're not going to walk for an hour to nowhere just to see how long I follow you… Are you?" I ask as I pick up my speed a little, while I wait for an answer. "Hello?!" I yell out of nervousness.

After a few more seconds of walking he comes to a stop, "We're here."

Stef's POV

I can almost feel my heart starting to pump out of my chest when I complete painting the first coat of the basement by myself. I hadn't stopped working on it since Lux had left but all I knew was that I had to finish.

"Stef?" I hear Lena's voice creep up behind me but I still don't stop.

"Yes, love?" I ask as I peek a quick glance at her, before I dip my roller back into the purple paint.

"Honey, when did you go out and buy paint?" she asks in an exasperated voice.

"Oh…" I start. "Uh, a couple of hours ago… You know, I figured if I start painting today then it won't be completely dry for at least 24 hours so," I shrug my shoulders.

"That's true, but you shouldn't apply the second coat until 24 hours after you've applied the first coat—"

"That's 48 hours," I shake my head in resistance. "That's too long. I'd rather just apply both now, so that we can start getting the furniture in here sooner and call the inspector tomorrow."

"You're calling the inspector tomorrow?" my wife asks in confusion.

"Well, yes, Lena. I told you that I wanted to fix everything down here as soon as possible. Lux can't come back until cps, or Fern, sees that she has somewhere to come back to. If I don't have this room finished soon, then…" I stop as I picture the possibilities, none of them good. "…I have to finish. It doesn't matter. I promise not to wake the kids and start hammering up a storm. Okay?"

"No, not okay," she shakes her head and gives me an opposing look.

"What?" I challenge as I squint my face at her.

"You can't do all of this tonight, Stef. You'll wear yourself out, not to mention you have work in the morning…"

"I know that. I'm still going to work. Don't worry. I just—I need to do this… You wouldn't understand."

"Then, help me understand," she says sternly.

I shake my head and continue to stroke the paint roller on the wall. I'm trying my best not to answer her but my exhaustion from staying up all night yesterday was getting to me. "… I haven't done anything, Lena. Don't you get that? I've known about Lux for days and I couldn't even get her a bed," I state sarcastically. "You heard what that woman said. I can't even provide my own child with the basic necessities!"

"Stef."

"I was going to have her sleep on our couch!" I continue. "What kind of mother am I?"

"That's not your fault, Stef. You didn't know about any of this. And Lux was staying with Mike. She wanted to stay with Mike, remember? There were other factors at play here than what you keep telling yourself—"

"It's no wonder she wanted to continue living with her boyfriend," I interrupt. "…or why she stayed at her friend's house last night instead of mine or Mike's. A—A 17 year old dropout can take care of my daughter better than I can—"

"There was too much going on," Lena raises her voice. "You were too busy dealing with Lux to worry about how many hours it would take for paint to dry. She was acting out."

I sigh deeply, silently wondering why she couldn't just admit the truth.

My wife looks at me for a while before continued ranting, "Stef, she stole records from the hospital and tried to get emancipated without either your or Mike's permission. She chose Mike instead of you, which I know must have been painful to deal with but you did. She's been ditching school. And let me tell you, I've seen her attendance record. It's not great… But that's a whole other issue and I'm getting off track here. Although, let's not forget that we found out what happened between her and Callie. To make matters worse, I messed up with her too, which caused her to runaway. And just last night, she went AWOL again and then..."

"Please stop," I tell her, not wanting to believe that my kid really went to a bar last night and slept over a strange man's house. I really wanted to think that it was just a ploy to get Fern to take her out of our custody.

"The point is: it's been less than a week Stef, you need time to adjust…"

"Lux is gone!" I repeat. Why wasn't she understanding this? I wonder

"Honey, I get that. But you need to realize that finishing this room isn't going to bring her back. Fern already told us that Lux needs to want to be here. And I know this is difficult for you to hear, but obsessing over this is not healthy for anyone."

"I know that she doesn't want to be here, Lena! She called cps on me because she wanted to get away from me so bad! You don't think I've realized that? Do you really think that I don't see the hate in her eyes every time she's in my presence?"

"Stef," Lena says as she tries to reach for my arm but I wont let her.

"No. You don't get to make me feel better. You can't fix this, Lena. So just stop."

"And you can't fix it by painting all night…" she pauses and grabs the paintbrush from me. I sigh in response because I know that she's not going to let any of this go. "We need to figure this all out… together, okay? You're always the one saying that some people need more time to process things. And I know that she's your daughter, our daughter," she corrects herself. "And I also know that you feel guilty for not having her in your life for those 14 years… but that rule should still apply here—"

"I don't need time to pr—"

"I know you don't. But you're her biological mother… It's instinctive for you want to protect her. But I really think she needs this time right now, to process all of these changes without you and Mike hovering over her. She hasn't had a chance to… Ever since she showed up on Tuesday, it's just been one big problem after another, and she can't deal with it. She's just a kid. That's why she's acting out."

"So what do I do? Let her go on thinking that we don't care. That she can just escape her problems with one phone call to the right person?"

"That's what these sessions are for, Stef," Lena smiles as if I hadn't put much thought into it. "They are so we can all feel comfortable saying what we have to say and move passed all of this."

"And what if the sessions don't work, huh? Have you thought about that? What if she doesn't participate and refuses to talk? Then what?"

"Then we have to," Lena finishes as she grabs the roller from my hand and plops it back onto the paint tray. "And you're not going to do that if you're all out of energy because you haven't slept in over 48 hours. So can we please go to bed?" she asks.

Deep down, I still want to protest but I knew that my wife was right. I couldn't put my hopes in assuming Lux would come back once I finished the basement. I realized that all along. But working on it made me feel like I was doing something now that Lux was gone.

Still, I needed to clear my head so that I could try and be prepared for tomorrow, even though I kept imagining the worst-case scenario.

A/N: Sorry but this was more of a filler chapter. Eric and Lux scenes are difficult for me to write, but their relationship is going to cause for loads of family drama in the future. I have to show them getting closer so that later on you're not like, wth? How did that happen? I normally dislike romance stories but I LOVE family drama. So if you're like me, I promise chaos will ensue.

Next chapter: Some Eric/Lux AND The Family's First Therapy Session. EXPECT DRAMA.

Also, if you guys have any ideas, I'm open to them. Won't promise anything but will consider them at least. I have my own ideas but I change them every freaking day. This is why I don't make outlines anymore :) Still, it wont hurt if you throw some at me. I might like your ideas better :P