Title: Pretend To Be Mine
Pairing: Stacie/Donald
A/N:
Hello again. First I want to apologize for the late update. I've just been extremely busy over the past few weeks. But I've been writing during my spare times which are quickly diminishing, so my updates won't be as close together as they used to. However, I DO promise to complete all my stories. Anyway, Chapter five is finally done, so REVIEW! A special thanks to the ones who have reviewed the previous chapter! I love you all for doing so. Enjoy!
-Sux2budude
Chapter Five:
...
"You HAVE to audition for the Barden Bella's." Donald says immediately upon entering her room.
Stacie looks curiously at him, "What?"
"Your singing voice is amazing!"
"How would you know that? I don't recall ever singing out loud since I started here."
Donald grins widely, "Your mom told me."
"She what?!" Stacie asks incredulously as she turns to her pretend boyfriend.
Donald only nods with a shrug, "She dropped by to see if we're still on for Friday night."
"And she came to you?"
"No, she was looking for you, but you were in class at the time so she told me to tell you that she dropped by."
Stacie huffs as she plops down at her desk chair, "And how did the topic of my singing come about?"
Donald's smile slides off for a long moment, "Uhh, I may have asked her for a few tips about you."
"You may have asked her for a few tips?" she asks flatly.
He practically crumbles under her stare. "Okay, I asked your mom if you were any good at singing."
"Why would you ask her that?"
Donald shrugs lightly and drops down beside her. "A friend of mine is recruiting for the Barden Bella's. You already have the looks, so I was just wondering if you had the voice to complete the Bella requirements."
"Requirements?"
"I don't know, I just figured that they picked their singers based on their hotness and their vocals."
Stacie rolls her eyes with a sigh, "Well, you can't just force me to audition... Besides, sign-ups for the clubs are probably over right now." she glances at her bedside clock and looks back at him, "It's almost twelve."
Donald smiles innocently at her, before it turns to a sheepish grin.
Stacie groans loudly, "What did you do, Donald?"
He shrinks away, "I might have signed you up this morning."
"You MIGHT have?"
"I'm sorry!" Donald yelps as Stacie hurls a pillow at his head.
"Oh, you owe me big time, Travers!"
Donald snorts as he runs towards the door, quickly ducking as a notebook hits the wall beside his head.
-SD-
...
It's a bright, sunny day and Stacie is buzzing with nerves. She can't predict how things are going to go at Coney Island with her mom and Donald, so she busies herself with her homeworks, and studying.
The time for her to meet up with Donald rolls around and she calls him to avoid any more nerves from giving her an epileptic shock.
"Sup, babe." he greets all too cheerfully.
"Hey, we still on for tonight?"
"Of course. But I must warn you, I'm like a bee at these things, so you better make sure you can keep up with me." he says jokingly, and Stacie grins, finally relaxing and loving his ability to always make her smile.
"Oh you should really be careful of who you're talking to." Stacie jokes.
"Is that a threat?" he asks playfully.
"It's a challenge, honey."
She hears him laugh, "Scarf five coneydogs and ride the giant swing twice?"
She answers with a laugh of her own. "You are so on!"
"Bet on it?"
She smiles mischievously, "Name your price."
"If I win, I get a kiss."
Stacie's thrown a bit, but she doesn't back down. "And if I win, you get to paint my toenails tomorrow."
He laughs at that. "You're on."
-SD-
Stacie watches her mom laughing so hard, and it makes her heart warm. She hasn't seen her like this in a while, and it takes a whole load off her shoulders... And it's all thanks to a certain guy, who is currently trying to throw pies at one of the game operators... and missing.
Ophelia steps up next to him and grabs one of his pies before pulling her arm back and sending the pie flying straight into the game operators face, hitting his face perfectly, and splattering the walls beside him.
Donald laughs along with Ophelia and he gives her a high-five.
"What in the world was that?" he asks.
Ophelia shrugs, "I was the MVP for the girls Varsity softball team back in high school."
"That was awesome!" Donald whirls around and spots Stacie smiling from her place at the table. "Hey babe! Get over here! You never told me your mom has a killer throwing arm."
Stacie gets up and walks over to where Donald is trying to throw another pie at the game operator's face. Her mom pulls away from the booth to stand beside her, as they both watch Donald throw and miss.
"He's a keeper." Ophelia murmurs to her daughter with a smile on her face.
Stacie stares back at Donald, a small smile playing on her lips. "He really is."
They continue to play random games here and there, until Ophelia plops down on a bench and shoo's the couple away to get some time on their own. They both agree to it, so as to not look suspicious if they declined.
Donald takes the time to pull her over to a food booth, and buying ten coneydogs for them. "You still owe me that kiss." he says with a grin.
Stacie laughs as she takes a hotdog from him. "Don't you mean you owe me a pedicure?" she takes her first bite of her coneydog and takes her time chewing as Donald scarfs down half his hot dog in one bite.
"You sure about that?" he says over a mouthful.
"Oh yeah, you ready to barf by the end of the night?"
"Don't count on it, babe."
They eat the rest of their coneydogs before running over to the giant swing.
Stacie takes her seat on the giant swing and glances behind her where Donald is sitting looking like he's about to barf. "You don't look so good back there." she calls. To be honest, she doesn't feel so good either, and she probably looks the way he does right then.
He shakes his head dismissively, "Nah, I'm fine, babe."
"You sure?"
He steels himself, "Yeah."
"Okay, but make sure you don't get sick while we're on the swing. I don't feel like taking a barf bath tonight."
He laughs, and she can tell by the weakness of it that he's really not feeling that well. He did after all chomp down five hotdogs in a maximum of five minutes. It's probably not digesting yet. She goes to call if he'd like to forfeit the bet, but the swing suddenly lurchs forward and it slowly starts to pick up speed. Soon enough, the swing was whipping through the air at breakneck speed, and she closes her eyes tightly, hoping she doesn't get sick too soon.
After what felt like a year long ride to hell and back, the swing finally slows to a halt, and she sits there for a few moments, trying to get her vision to stop moving in circles. She's taken aback by the sound of someone vomiting from behind her, and she turns to see Donald puking all over the grass in front of him. She dizzily approaches him, not at all feeling very well. She feels her food traveling back up from her stomach, and then she's puking too, right next to him. She dry heaves for a few long moments until she's sure she's emptied out the contents of her stomach.
Donald wipes his mouth on his sleeve and looks at her. She smiles at him, and he grins back until they're suddenly laughing so hard, she thinks she might barf again.
"Who's dumb idea was it to eat five hotdogs before riding a giant swing?"
Donald shakes his head, "I thought I had a strong stomach... The last time I tried that, I was fine."
"When was the last time you tried that?"
He rubs his stomach as they slowly start back towards the game booths where they left Stacie's mom.
"I was in the third grade." he replies.
Stacie laughs as she leads them towards the restrooms. "Let's wash up first. We both smell like barf."
"Please don't say barf." Donald groans.
"Barf." Stacie teases.
He chuckles as they each separate to wash up inside the restrooms.
The night finally comes to an end, and they're all eating cotton candy as they head towards the parking lot.
Ophelia hugs Donald and thanks him and Stacie for inviting her tonight, letting them know that she had so much fun.
"Anytime, Mrs. O." Donald says politely as he backs towards his car to give the two women some time alone.
Ophelia turns to her daughter with a huge smile on her face, "Your father would've loved him." she states.
Stacie smiles as she looks over to where Donald is currently leaning against his car and taking a huge bite from his cotton candy, grinning boyishly. "Yeah."
"I really do think he might be the perfect one for you."
Stacie's smile turns a bit sad, feeling terrible for lying to her mother. Her mom seems so much more relaxed that she's met Donald and actually thinks that he was really Stacie's boyfriend. It's seriously not a thought she wants to dwell on because if she was to have it her way, things would be much more complicated. The fact is, Donald is only pretending, and she knows she can't afford to lose focus of that. This was just an agreement between them. And sometimes she wishes she knew exactly what he's thinking. She could never be sure if he's really giving her those warm looks that makes her feel all tingly inside, or if he's just pretending because her mother was around. Still, she needs to keep up with the pretending, if only to let her mom rest from worrying over her.
"I think so too, mom." and to some extent, she really thinks that.
"Well, you're probably tired. I am too, so you should get some rest, Sweety... Sorry I won't be able to make your audition for the Barden Bella's." Ophelia apologizes sincerely.
"It's okay, mom... Donald will be there." she says hoping her mom would just relax. It works and her mom smiles warmly in Donald's direction. "Make sure to thank him again for me."
Stacie nods as she steps up to her mom and hugs her tightly. "I'll call you tomorrow."
"Okay, take care of yourself, and don't stay up too late."
Stacie nods with a smile as she pulls away. "I know... Love you, mom."
"I love you too."
"Drive safely!" Ophelia calls over to Donald as he waves.
Stacie heaves a sigh of relief as she saunters over to Donald's car.
"I guess I won't be getting that kiss." Donald says with a little smile.
Stacie smiles back at him. "I guess I won't be getting that pedicure."
Donald laughs as he steps next to her. "I think we make a good couple." he mutters softly.
Stacie quirks an eyebrow at him, but he's looking at her in that way that gets her nervous, so she looks away.
"You don't have to fight it, you know?" he says.
She knows that he's referring to whatever it is that's between them. "I can't afford to be distracted from school."
He smirks at her then, "I'm a distraction to you?"
She quickly denies with an obviously fake scoff that makes Donald laugh. "Pshhh, no... Not in the way you're thinking."
Donald raises his hand in mock surrender. "Fine... But since we both lost the bet, how about you let me walk you to your room."
Stacie finally lets her facade fall away as she smiles sweetly at him. "Still challenging?"
"Of course."
"Fine." she finally agrees. "But you owe me lunch on our next study-session."
He pretends to choke out a gasp as he holds a hand to his heart in mock surprise. "Are you asking me out?"
Stacie smacks him playfully on the arm as she opens the passenger door with a laugh, "You wish, Travers."
Their night finally comes to an end as Donald leans against the wall beside the door to her room.
"Tonight was fun." he mutters.
Stacie smiles with a nod. "Yeah... Thank you for feigning amusement tonight. I don't think I've ever seen my mom laugh so much."
He shrugs, "I didn't have to fake anything cause your mom is pretty cool."
"Yeah."
There's a pause for a few moments as they just stare at each other with wide grins on their faces.
"I should probably go and let you get some sleep."
"Yeah." she nods again, but she makes no move towards the door. Instead she steps closer to him, watching his eyes flicker to her lips.
"Can I kiss you?" he suddenly asks in a breathy whisper.
She doesn't answer as her eyes slowly close and she leans towards him. After a moment, she finally feels his lips against hers and she's sure she's never felt anything so perfect. Their lips move in sync and she likes how soft his lips are against hers. He pulls away slowly and she keeps her eyes closed trying to savor the feeling.
"I should really go now." she hears him whisper.
"Wha-?" she feels dazed as she leans towards him again, feeling like there's an invisible tether pulling her to him. Their lips meet again, but this time he deepens it, his tongue seeking entrance and she immediately grants access as her arms move of their own accord and wrap around his neck.
His arms find their way around her hips and that's when she finally snaps out of her dazed state. She pulls back quickly as if she was burned and she stares wide eyed at his face.
"What's wrong?" he asks confusedly.
"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have kissed you." her voice is somewhat frantic.
"What? What are you talking about? I'm totally okay with this." he protests as she steps away from his arms.
Stacie shakes her head wryly, "Of course you're okay with this... This is what you do, isn't it?"
Donald shakes his head as he tries to get her to stay. "No, it's not... I'm just- I'm sorry if-"
"No, I'm sorry." Stacie cuts him off. "You should go."
Before he can protest, Stacie closes the door in his face, leaving him completely confused as to what was going on.
Donald yanks at his hair with one hand and rubs his forehead with the other. "Fuck." he breathes frustratedly as he turns away and heads back to his room, wondering how a single kiss from a girl could manage to destroy half his brain cells... Or at least he thinks it destroyed half his brain cells because he can't think clearly.
He turns back and grits out a frustrated, "I already have enough missing brain cells!" he kicks a door to his right and stomps away before the owner of the room could come outside and kill whoever kicked their door at 12:34pm.
-SD-
...
Stacie breathes in deeply and lets it out slowly as she awaits the conclusion to her audition. She's extremely annoyed that she may have messed up because Donald was right in the audience, smiling up at her. It's been two days since the kiss they shared and it's honestly been an excruciatingly slow two days for her. He acts like nothing happened between them, and she's not sure whether to feel relaxed or repulsed. He seems unaffected by a lot of things, and it's unsettling.
"Stacie Conrad?" The redhead from the Barden Bella's calls her name.
Stacie steps forward with a nervous smile.
The redhead climbs atop the stage and approaches her with a wide smile, that helps to calm some of her nerves. "Congratulations, you got through!"
Stacie let's out a relieved sigh, and everyone freezes when someone from the audience erupts into an applaudclaps with a loud whoop. She blushes when she sees Donald grinning from ear to ear as he continues to applaud her.
"Your boyfriend?" The redhead asks with a smile. Stacie looks back at Donald, feeling her stomach flutter around at the sight of his supportive self.
If he asks, she'll just say she was sticking with their agreement. "Yeah." she nods.
"Wow... that's impressive."
"What is?"
"You managed to tame wonder-boy."
"Oh." she says because she's not sure what to say to that. After all, she's only pretending to 'tame' wonder-boy.
Well, I'm Chloe. Welcome to the Barden Bella's." The redhead grins widely and sticks out her hand.
Stacie grins as she shakes Chloe's hand. "Thank you."
The blonde girl which Stacie figured was the leader approaches them with a little smile. "Reference from Donald is high praise." she says, obviously impressed. "But with your performance, Donald's reference is barely visible... Your performance was spectacular."
Stacie thanks the girl who then introduces herself as Aubrey, the leader of the Barden Bella's.
"So we'll see you tonight at the initiation?" Chloe asks expectantly.
"You will." Stacie chances a glance in Donald's direction, and he's still smiling supportively at her. He gives her a quick thumbs-up and she can't help but smile back. She hopes he can see the apology in her eyes for going all weird on him after the kiss.
-DS-
...
He approaches her as she's about to exit the auditorium.
"I'm sorry about the other night." he says, his hands stuck inside the pockets of his jeans.
She's genuinely surprised that he's apologizing to her, considering the size of his ego. "No, I'm the one who should be apologizing for acting like a maniac."
He only shakes his head and insists that he's the one at fault... Which, is kind of true because it kind of is his fault for being so goddamn hot all the time. How can anyone resist him?!
"Truce?" he holds out his hand with a sheepish grin.
She shakes it and doesn't let go when his fingers intertwine with hers. She must admit that she's never liked the feeling of anyone's hands as much as she likes his. Warm, rough, yet soft at the same time.
"I'm still sorry." Stacie mutters softly.
"Don't be." he lifts their intertwined hands and places a short kiss behind hers. "You can blame Chemistry."
She smiles widely at him as they make their way out of the auditorium.
Chemistry is certainly the one to blame.
-SD-
A/N: Yellow everybody! Haha... Well, I've finally managed to stick Stacie into the Barden Bella's. I know, she seems like a prude in this story, but fret not my wonderful reading ducklings! There will be a shitload of flirtatious moments between Stacie and wonder-boy Donald in the next chapter. Just think of all the possibilities of that nail-biting build-up to when Stacie finally can't deny that she's got the FEELS for Donald, aye? (*wink wink*) And Donald can't deny that Stacie is the only girl that makes him want to be a better person. But that's in the long-haul. For now, let's enjoy the flirty parts, like the party after the initiation, and there's the riff-off! All those amazing little moments with my own translations of what went down between the two... And no, I've decided that Stacie and Donald needs a break from the whole "No Treble-Banging" rule that Aubrey made in the movie. I want the Treble's and the Bella's to get along for a change. Anyway, this chapter was kind of a fluke. I just wanted to post a little something for all you wonderful readers who thought I died or fell off the face of the earth. I assure you, I'm still alive and well. Just a bit busy with life. :) Anyway, next chapter will start out amazingly light and fluffy-ish, but it MIGHT end in a bit of an angsty cliff-hanger way. Just a heads up on that. But thanks again for reading, and please review!
-Sux2budude