Sorry for taking forever to update! I've just been really busy (and okay, lazy) lately. This chapter's shorter than the first but it's got a bunch of memories in it so you guys will understand Courtney's life a bit more.

I'm aiming for at least 20 reviews before putting up the next chapter so if you want to read more, make sure to review!

-J

Courtney clenched her fists so tightly, her knuckles turned white. This couldn't be happening. There was no way it was the Duncan. Duncan was a common name, right?

"No, it's not him," Courtney told herself silently in a desperate attempt to reassure herself. "It's not him." She laughed crazily, this time aloud, the way she did whenever she lost control of a situation.

The way she laughed when she was with Duncan.

No. She would not let herself think that. But a tidal wave of emotions rushed to her and as the thought dawned to her, everything else ceased to exist. Courtney abruptly stood up, then, just as suddenly, sat back down again. After a second, she decided she couldn't take it anymore and started to pace around the small room.

She felt the room start to close in. The oxygen felt as if it were running out; she couldn't breathe. Her breaths turned to gasps and she swore the room was spinning. She had to get out of here. She needed to take a walk.

Once she decided what she was going to do next, she felt a lot better. Her breaths slowly returned to normal and she smiled at how well she handled that situation. Humming a little, she put on her shoes and left the little place she called home.

Free from the enclosure of her house's walls, she felt free. The cool air calmed her and she took in a deep breath. She absolutely loved Vancouver. It was beautiful much more full of life than Muskoka had ever been, with the exception of Total Drama. But really, that could hardly reflect real Muskoka life—it was just a once in a lifetime thing. Okay, fine, in her case, it was a thrice in a lifetime thing. It wasn't as if it was going to happen again, though; it was hard enough to get back on the second time. She smiled at the memory of her triumph with her lawyers. Of course, it had taken way too long and if it she were her own lawyer, she probably would've been on the show from the beginning, but still.

However, her happiness had faded as soon as it had come. She could still clearly remember what happened the day she returned in Total Drama Action.

"Afternoon, ma'am. That's a great set of legs you got there, but right now I'd like to focus on those lovely hands of yours. I need them to start filling this pillowcase with cash."

Duncan had sounded so proud of himself, so sure. Courtney had to bite back a laugh so she wouldn't ruin it.

"Anything else I can do for you today," she asked before pulling off her wig and turning to face him, "Duncan?"

And that reminded her of her current problems. She just had to think about that, didn't she?

No. She would not let that stupid, filthy, lying, cheating bastard do this to her. It was just a name, one six-letter word. There was no way Courtney would let a certain someone ruin everything she worked for to get to where she was now. Besides, now that she thought about it, she never found out what Duncan's last name was. What were the chances of them being the same person?

Once she had addressed her dilemma a second time, Courtney's mind was clear and she was able to properly absorb what was around her. She was outside the Starbucks. At once, the memories that had almost been forgotten resurfaced.

Courtney cursed under her breath as the wind picked up again, sending another bucketful of rain in her direction. She looked up at the dark, gray sky in distaste.

Why couldn't it have rained when she got to work? Why did it have to happen now?

She could've turned back and taken the Skytrain to work instead—that would've been the more practical, Courtney-like decision. But she needed her morning caffeine; not only was it a jolt to her still-asleep mind, it was a part of life. Or at least, it was a part of her life.

"I'm almost there. It would be a waste to go back now," she told herself determinedly (or stubbornly, depending on how you liked at it).

Finally, she spotted the familiar logo. She breathed a sigh of relief and walked briskly towards it.

"One tall cappuccino, please," she said breathlessly to the barista. "And make it quick."

Her cappuccino hadn't been ready nearly as fast as she hoped; a sign that the universe had definitely turned against her, she thought at the time. Or was it? Because as she waited impatiently for her drink, cold in her still-damp clothes, she spotted one of the most attractive men she had ever seen.

"Let me guess," Courtney said as he waited for his order. She looked up and down at his police uniform. "A doughnut and Americano?"

Beside her, the man grinned sheepishly. "I'm quite the cliché," he admitted.

Surprised that she was right (though why should she be?), Courtney couldn't help but laugh.

"Cappuccino for Courtney!" announced a barista, holding up her drink.

"Cappuccino?" the man asked, raising an eyebrow as Courtney got her coffee. "Funny, I thought you would've been a latte girl."

"Don't feel bad. Not everyone can get it right," she teased, receiving a deep laugh.

"Doughnut and Americano for Wesley!"

Courtney waited patiently as the man—Wesley—went to receive his order. Once he had returned, a coffee in one hand and a bitten doughnut in the other, the two left together.

It was still raining outside so Wesley extended an umbrella and motioned for her to join him under it.

"So, Wesley, huh?" Courtney asked.

"So, Courtney, huh?" he mocked. After they both laughed he stuck out his hand. "Yes, I'm Wesley."

Courtney shook his hand and smiled. "Courtney. Nice to meet you."

"Where are you headed to?" he asked after a momentary uncomfortable silence. He eyed her wet clothes, then looked up at the rain, which didn't look like it was going to let up anytime soon.

"Ogilvy Renault LLP," she answered.

He raised an eyebrow and muttered to himself, "A lawyer, huh," before saying, louder so that Courtney could hear him, "I hope you're not planning to walk there."

"And what if I am?" she asked, her defensiveness sparking up. Was it just her imagination or did he sound stuck-up? So what if she didn't own a car? Not everyone did. She was just saving up for something better, something more useful, something—

"Then I would offer you a ride," he grinned, interrupting her thoughts.

She could feel her cheeks turn hot despite herself.

"In that case, I'll accept," she said, the tone of her voice making it sound like she was the one doing him a favor, not the other way around.

Courtney smiled to herself. What had she been thinking? There was nothing to worry about. If it did happen to be the Duncan, he probably forgot about her anyway. The cheating piece of shit had never really cared about her—he would never have kissed Gwen, her best friend for God's sake, behind her back if he did. Even if he did remember her, she could easily pretend she was the one whoforgot. Duncan wouldn't have the courage to bring it up again, right? Especially because it was Courtney they were talking about. No, he would be glad she "forgot" about the whole episode and at the same time, Courtney would act like a sensible adult and would ignore any urges to take her revenge. At least, she wouldn't do anything too horrible; there was no saying for sure that she wouldn't "accidentally" give him the wrong dates or "accidentally" trip him.

She smiled deviously to herself, imagining horrible ways to kill that monster.

It's amazing how comforting that could be.

"Someone's looking happy," Wesley noted once Courtney entered the kitchen.

The smell of crispy bacon and fried eggs filled the air. Courtney's stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn't eaten yet. She had been too busy worrying about Duncan. Damn Duncan—she hadn't even seen him yet and he was already driving her nuts. If it even was him.

"Hey, what happened to your smile?"

Immediately, Courtney pasted a big fake smile on her face. "It's nothing," she said quickly. Even though they were going to get married in just two months and seventeen days, and it was all broadcasted worldwide, she still wasn't ready to tell him about Duncan (she knew he never watched Total Drama; he would've recognized her the day they met otherwise and she never told him about it). Her? Being cheated on? It was all too humiliating.

Her fiancé frowned, but he knew better than to argue. Instead, he held out a plate, "Bacon and eggs?"

Courtney looked down at her stomach consciously. "I think I'll skip. I have to look good for the wedding pictures!"

"You look perfect to me," Wesley said, wrapping his arms around her waist. He kissed her lightly before pulling away to say, "Since when did you get so insecure? You're confident about everything."

Courtney shrugged and returned to the study. The truth was, she was. At least, she was about most things. But appearance was a completely different matter. Nobody knew how many hours she'd spent at the gym kickboxing or running. Nobody knew how many crunches she did daily (100), or how many push-ups she could do in a minute (68).

Nobody knew how hard it was for her to look the way she did.

Just because she wore exposing clothes didn't mean she was confident in her body. She couldn't even count the number of times she was sure she found a bulge in her stomach (all false alarms though, thank God). People always assumed she was born perfect and as flattering as that was, it gave her a weird feeling of loneliness at times.

She was getting distracted again. She blinked back into reality, and got to work. Hours after intensely going through the necessary paperwork for her case, Courtney felt her head begin to pound. Her legs were stiff from staying in the same position for so long and her vision blurred from staring at her computer screen for so long. She mustered her will power to look at the time on her computer screen. 10:11. She rubbed her eyes and groaned; there was still so much to do. But her stomach growled and she shut her laptop with the intentions of getting back to it after quickly grabbing something to eat. Just as she got up, her phone made a ding sound and she reached over to check her new text.

Suddenly, she wasn't hungry anymore.