A/N.: As always thank you to you guys for reading and all that. This chapter will basically be about Steve's and Mitchie's relationship. I hope you don't find the ending of this chapter too cheesy ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own the song "Broken Angel" by Boyce Avenue, which will be used in another chapter as well. You should check out the acoustic version, it's amazing!

Chapter 8:

"Mitch, you gotta trust me on that. I know the guy, we've hired him before and he did a great job finding that stalker, who threatened to kill us. It's going to work out just fine," Shane tried to reassure her about hiring a private investigator.

"I know, but just because he was good at finding Connect 3's creepy stalker, doesn't mean that he'll be able to work without my father noticing him. Do you have any idea how mad he would be if he ever found out? I just..." she trailed off, not knowing how to express her thoughts.

"I get that, but sometimes you just have to take that risk. The sooner we hire somebody, the sooner we'll know what's going on with your dad, please Mitch, I want this to be over just as much as you do," he said, playing with her hair.

"Fine, I just hope, that I won't regret this," Mitchie finally agreed.

It had been two and a half weeks since they had called Darren Miller, private investigator, to find out how Mitchie's father was spending the amount of money, his daughter had lent him. Mitchie and Shane both had been very busy recording for their respective albums and promoting their new singles, but they were both anxiously awaiting this day- the day when Darren would tell them what he'd found out.

Luckily Darren had another appointment close to their neighborhood, so they didn't have to drive all the way to his office, which was out of town. They sat down in the living room, where Darren pulled out a manila folder.

"So, for the past two weeks, I've been collecting information about your father as well as keeping track of his whereabouts and I'm really sorry to inform you, that your father has indeed not been spending your money for the reasons he mentioned to you," he told Mitchie, looking through his notes. Shane squeezed Mitchies hand in a reassuring manner.

"Did you also find out, why his job doesn't pay well?" Mitchie asked.

"Yes, I did- it appears that your father chose to only work half-time, but he would be able to pay his bills easily if he took the full-time position he's been offered from the beginning."

Mitchies brows furrowed in confusion "But, he moved here just before contacting me- he must have known that he wouldn't be able to pay his rent, that doesn't make any sense, but what for did he spend my money then?" she asked, hoping that everything would finally make sense.

"Well, apparently your father's lifestyle consists of quite a few expensive hobbies- for one he plays golf at the most famous golf-club of Los Angeles and he also seems to enjoy visiting the upper class bars around the city, where he and his friends mostly order the more expensive drinks," he told them, while showing them several photos of Steve and his friends.

Shane was getting angrier by the minute "So, what you've been telling us can only lead to one conclusion, which is that that man, had the nerve to ask his daughter for money, that he wouldn't even need if he would stop being so focused on his own pleasure and start working more?!"

"I'm afraid so, I'm really sorry, but if you decide to sue, feel free to list me as a witness and use my research as evidence," Darren said and gathered his belongings, getting ready to leave his clients to digest the information they had just received.

"Thank you for your help, Sir," Mitchie and Shane said while leading him to the door.

"You're welcome, have a good day," he said before leaving.

After closing the door, Mitchie looked at Shane with sad eyes "So, I guess you were right, he only used me, I'm such an idiot for trusting him again," she whispered, looking down.

"Hey, hey. You're definitely not an idiot, Mitch. You were just trying to see the best in him and that's totally understandable, don't blame this on yourself," he said, making her look up.

"Thank you, I know I shouldn't, but I still feel responsible for all of this. I should have been more careful, if only I could turn back time..." she said, wiping away a stray tear, now just angry at her own stupidity.

"What do you, you know, wanna do about him?" Shane asked.

Mitchie sighed angrily "I don't know, but I know one thing for sure- today will be the last day, that I will speak directly to him. Period," she said while walking over to the phone.

"Mitch, are you sure, this is a good idea?" he asked, but Mitchie only brushed him off, having already dialed her father's number.

"Michelle?"

"Let's cut the crap Steve- I know what you did and though it took me some time to figure it out, I'm not as stupid as you think!"

"What are you talking about?!"

"Wow, you really practiced the innocent part, didn't you? You can pretend all you want, as long as you stay the heck out of my life! I never want to speak to you again! I was never important to you, you never gave a damn and I don't know what I did to make you hate me, but it's not as if you'd give me a reason anyway," she ranted, while tears were streaming down her face.

"You know what? I was right all along- you're a spoiled brat, you can't even appreciate your own father! Don't expect to hear from me again!"

"Fine!" she screamed and slammed the phone down, her whole body shaking with rage and sadness. Shane quickly went over to his girlfriend to comfort her, but she shook him off and went into their bedroom.

"I'm sorry, I just need some space. I will go out for a run, I'll be back in an hour," she said while changing into her running clothes and turning on her iPod.

"Okay, I'll make dinner. Be careful," he said, while closing the door after her.

When he went back to the living room, he felt a sudden inspiration for the song he had been stuck on writing for a while. He looked over the lyrics and took his guitar to figure out a melody to go with it. After a while he decided on a long intro and a simple melody to go with the lyrics.

"And I promise that it's not your fault
It was never your fault
And I promise that it's not your fault
It was never your fault,
You're just a broken angel," he played the lyrics that he could relate most to at the moment.

He wanted Mitchie to see, that she hadn't done anything wrong. She was his broken angel and he was incredibly proud of her.