Hello everyone! Thanks for reading and reviewing. Reviews let me know what you guys are thinking, so I appreciate them greatly. Disclaimer *I DO NOT OWN OR HAVE ANY RIGHTS TO the lyrics from the song "I'm Okay" by Chrisette Michelle or "Almost is Never Enough" by Ariana Grande and Nathan Sykes. Used strictly for entertainment purposes. I hope you enjoy this latest update.
For a few weeks, Lacey was doing a pretty good job of masking her emotions at school. Nobody there had any idea just how miserable she actually was. They might be a little surprised to hear that most nights, she cried herself to sleep. She would always bury her face in the pillow so that no one could hear her. Judy was aware of the breakup, but Lacey never talked to her about it. There was no way for her to explain the truth, so she just told Judy that it didn't work out. Judy never pressed it further, because she knows that when Lacey doesn't want to talk about something, she won't.
Danny, however didn't even try to hide his pain. He was heartbroken and he didn't care who knew it. He seemed to fall apart without Lacey by his side. Joe still didn't care that his best friend was depressed. He got what he wanted and that's all that mattered to him. Sarita didn't like the change in Danny at all. It kind of disgusted her to see how down he was about Lacey breaking up with him. He didn't act like that when they broke up. He didn't mope, flinch, or falter in any way. If she didn't know it before, she knows it now. Danny was totally and completely in love with Lacey. Sarita got a first hand view of Danny going into his staring routine when they were at lunch. She hated that. She hated the way Danny looked at Lacey with so much love, hurt, longing, and desire in his eyes. She still couldn't get over the things she saw in that video. Not only did they do everything to each other, things that he never even attempted to do with her mind you, but she could tell from that video that they weren't just having sex, they were making love to each other.
Sarita tried to trip Lacey up one day. She knew that there was no way Lacey was this calm and cool over breaking up with Danny. So Sarita put on her fake friend hat and decided to test the waters. They were sitting at the lunch table one day and the guys hadn't arrived yet. Regina wasn't at school that day, and Phoebe was in the line getting something to drink so Lacey and Sarita were sitting at the table alone.
"Lacey, you know I know how you're feeling, so if you ever want to talk to me, you can." Sarita says.
Lacey just looks at her. "You know how I feel about what? And what could we possibly have to talk about?" Lacey asks.
"I know how you feel about being heartbroken. And we can compare notes on how Danny hurt both of us."
Lacey lies. "I'm not heartbroken. And we don't need to talk about Danny."
"You're not?" Sarita asks.
"No, I'm not. I'm not you, Sarita. I know how to let shit go, unlike you."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Sarita asks in a nasty tone.
"It means that if a guy broke up with me and moved on, I wouldn't still be thirsting after him." Lacey states in the same nasty tone.
Sarita huffs. "I'm not thirsting after him."
Lacey laughs. "Well, you sure look thirsty to me. He's free now. Why don't you see if you can get him back? Oh, that's right, Danny doesn't want you."
"At least he didn't go out with me as a bet." Sarita says as she leans back in her chair and folds her arms. The smirk on her face is enough to make Lacey rearrange it.
"At least I got the dick. He wouldn't touch you with a ten foot pole. And his is almost that long, too." Lacey counters, leaning back in her seat and mimicking Sarita's actions. What Sarita said stung, but she wasn't gonna let that bitch see that.
"You fat bitch!" Sarita digs.
"You skinny bitch!" Lacey says right back to her. People at the other tables are looking at them. Phoebe has walked up to the table and the guys have started to walk in. It's like two dogs squaring off, and everybody is looking to see which one will bite first.
"What is going on?" Phoebe asks as she sits down. She's praying Sarita and Lacey don't start fighting.
Danny walks over and stands next to Lacey. "Are you ok?" Danny asks. He's genuinely concerned.
So she can make Sarita feel worse, Lacey looks up and smiles at him. "I'm fine. Thanks." She turns and smiles back at Sarita.
"Can we talk in private for a minute?" Danny asks, voice full of hope.
Lacey still really doesn't want to talk to him, but she decides to do so just to piss Sarita off further. "Sure." Lacey says as she stands up to follow him into the hallway. Sarita eyes Joe. There are worried expressions on both of their faces. This isn't supposed to happen. Danny and Lacey are not supposed to be on speaking terms.
Once they're in the hallway, Lacey goes back into diva mode. "What do you want, Danny?" Lacey asks.
"I just wanted to talk to you. I hope you've calmed down by now and can now listen to me. Lacey, I swear I didn't do what you think I did." Danny says as he begins his bout with pleading with her to believe him.
"Let's just say that I believe you. So please explain to me how a video of us that was made in your room got sent to people?"
"Well, that's what we've gotta figure out." Danny says.
"Says you." Lacey says. "Is there anything else you want to say?" Lacey asks harshly.
Danny takes this time to step closer to her. Lacey backs up. Danny moves closer. Lacey backs up again until the wall stops her from moving any further. He's standing just mere inches away from her, but he hasn't touched her.
"Tell me you don't miss me." Danny says.
Lacey swallows hard. "I don't miss you." Lacey lies.
Danny steps a little closer to her. "Tell me you don't love me anymore." Danny says as he reaches up to start stroking her neck. Lacey closes her eyes briefly and lets out a moan.
Lacey tries to find the words, but she knows she can't say it. His touch is doing something to her. For a minute, she forgets that she hates his guts. She forgets where she is as he leans in and presses his lips to hers. They both get lost in the kiss until Lacey remembers where they are in their relationship, She pushes Danny away from her as she tries to walk away. He grabs her hand and pulls her back to him and in for another kiss. Lacey quickly pulls away from him and darts from the hallway.
The next day at school, Lacey and the rest of the choir find out that they will be participating in the school's Talent Extravaganza. Mrs. Stevens announces that she really wants to showcase the talent of the choir members. She tells each student what songs they have to sing and she informs Lacey that she wants her to sing another solo and duet. But this time, her duet will be with a guy. Lacey's heart really isn't into singing anything. And she really doesn't like the song choices Mrs. Stevens has selected for her. But she knows that there isn't anything she can do about it because Mrs. Stevens really doesn't take no for an answer. Lacey really thinks about faking sick again, but she knows that won't work either. She isn't afraid of singing in front of the school anymore, she's just not in a singing mood, And the song choices don't help much. Mrs. Stevens lets them know she wants to have quick rehearsals with each couple that's singing a duet each day after school until the pageant on Friday. Today is the day she picked for her and Kevin.
So that Tuesday after school, Lacey returns to the music room to rehearse with Kevin and Mrs. Stevens. Since Lacey and Kevin are pretty much the best singers on the choir, rehearsal doesn't take long. Mrs. Stevens and Kevin leave and Lacey decides to stick around to play the piano. It always relaxed her and made her feel better to just get lost in playing. She sits down and just starts to play until the raw emotion takes over and she tries to convey what she's feeling through song.
Time don't stop and wait for pain
Pain does fade away in time
Guess it all was just a game
When you gave your heart and I gave mine
I'm okay
I'm just fine
We fade away hardly crossed my mind
I'm okay
My memories, they comfort me
Thoughts of what we used to be
Must admit you had me fooled
The love felt real, I can't deny
I really wish I did not know the truth
So I could go back to that lovely lie
I'm okay
I'm just fine
You'd fade away hardly crossed my mind
I'm okay
My memories, they comfort me
Thoughts of what this used to be
And it only hurts when I breathe
I can't feel it til I take a breath
And I'm holding on to these false memories
Cause that's all, all that I've got left
As the lyrics, tears, and emotions poured out of Lacey, she had no idea that Danny had entered the school and watched her spontaneous performance. It hurt him even more to see her that hurt. When she caved in on the piano and started to cry, he had no choice but to go over and hold her in his arms. As much as she wanted to push him away, she couldn't. It felt wonderful and normal to be in his arms again.
Danny finally speaks. "I hate seeing you this hurt."
Lacey tries to pull herself together and pulls away from him. "I'm okay." She says as she grabs her bag and leaves the room. Watching her constantly walk away from him was really starting to take a toll on Danny.
The next day while the guys were in the locker room changing for practice, Archie brings up the subject of Regina's party. He hopes that that will excite Danny and pull him out of the slump he's been in. Regina's parties tend to get a little wild, and everyone that's there always has a good time. Archie doesn't like this new side of his team captain, and wants it to change. Danny has pretty much turned into a totally different person. And Joe is enjoying every minute of it. He finally got Superman to crumble. And he was right about Lacey being his kryptonite. Danny seemed to die a little without Lacey in his life.
"Are you guys going to Regina's party?" Archie asks no one in particular.
"I didn't know Regina was having a party. When is it?" Cole asks.
"Saturday night." Archie responds.
"Yeah, I'm going." Joe says. He might even hook up with Regina while he's there. Even though he and Phoebe started sleeping together, he hasn't broken things off with Regina.
"I guess I'll go. I don't have anything else planned." Says Cole.
"What about you, Danny?" Archie asks.
"Probably not. I'm not really in the partying mood right now." Danny says as he pulls his shoulder pads down over his head.
"I heard Lacey's coming." Archie says. Joe gives him a look that Archie doesn't understand, but ignores.
Danny suddenly perks up. "I'll be there." Danny says as he grabs his helmet and heads to the field. Cole leaves with him.
Joe waits until the coast is clear before digging in to Archie.
"Why did you tell him that?" Joe asks, the annoyance clear in his voice.
"Tell him what?" Archie asks. He has no idea why Joe is upset about anything he said.
"Why did you tell him Lacey will be at that party?" Joe asks in frustration.
"Because he'll want to see her. It's clear he's sad about their breakup. Don't you care that Danny isn't his normal self?" Archie asks, getting annoyed himself.
"And we'll have to spend the night watching him mope and stare at her. I wanna have fun at that party." Joe says, clearly only thinking of himself. As usual.
"Well Joe, you can do whatever you want to do. If I have to try to get them back together so Danny is himself again, then I will. You should want that too. He is your best friend." He's also responsible for their breakup and Danny's pain. And Joe doesn't give a damn about it.
"Whatever." Joe says as he grabs his helmet to leave.
"Man, you are so fucking selfish. You don't even care that Danny is upset, do you?" Archie asks Joe in disgust. He's 100% right.
"I do care." Joe lies.
"Well, you've got a funny way of showing it." Archie says as he leaves the locker room.
Joe just scoffs and walks out of the locker room behind Archie.
That Friday, it was time for the Talent Extravaganza. Lacey was still not in the right frame of mind to sing. But she knew she had to do it. Thankfully, she wasn't the first to sing this time. Duncan was the first to sing. He sang "Ribbon In The Sky" by Stevie Wonder. Next up was Lacey and she looked stunning in a black, jersey wrap dress. She sang "I Have Nothing" by Whitney Houston. the other choir members sang songs and the Talent Extravaganza was an awesome show. The problem didn't start until Lacey sang her duet with Kevin. They sang "Almost Is Never Enough" by Ariana Grande and Nathan Sykes.
I'd like to say we gave it a try
I'd like to blame it all on life
Maybe we just weren't right, but that's a lie, that's a lie
And we can deny it as much as we want
But in time our feelings will show
Cause sooner or later
We'll wonder why we gave up
The truth is everyone knows
Almost, almost is never enough
So close to being in love
If I would have known that you wanted me
The way I wanted you
Then maybe we wouldn't be two worlds apart
But right here in each other's arms
And we almost, we almost knew what love was
But almost is never enough
If I could change the world overnight
There'd be no such thing as goodbye
You'd be standing right where you were
And we'd get the chance we deserve...
The parallels to their own relationship wasn't wasted on Danny. He hated that Lacey was that close and he couldn't touch her. He hated that his relationship with her was ruined, possibly beyond repair. He hated even more that he wasn't responsible, yet he was being blamed for it. She blamed him for betraying her and breaking her heart. He blamed her for believing that he'd do that to her and for breaking his heart. Neither one of them was winning in this situation. Danny took this time to walk out of the auditorium before he lost it. All he could think about was getting her back, and getting the person that did this.
By the time they made it to lunch, Danny was in a dark place and in a dark mood. Fire seemed to dance behind his eyes. The guys all knew that Danny has a dark side, especially when it came to Lacey, but this seemed different. He looked to be on the verge of rage. Right now he focused on Lacey. He twirled a pen between his fingers and just looked at her. He missed and loved her so much, it hurt. He had to have her back in his life. All of the guys noticed he was mumbling to himself, something Danny normally doesn't do. They were used to him looking at Lacey the way he did. Archie is at the point where he doesn't care how Danny takes it, he just needs to say something.
"Danny, you alright, man?" Archie asks cautiously. Cole and Joe look up. They both have no idea the other one is involved in the destruction of Danny and Lacey.
"Yeah." Danny says. ''Or at least I will be."
"You will be what?" Archie asks again cautiously. He knows that saying the wrong thing might cause Danny to snap.
"I'll be alright when I get Lacey back and when I get the person that did this." Danny says.
"Did what? What are you talking about Danny?" Joe asks, feigning knowledge. He knows exactly what Danny is talking about.
"When I find out who's behind breaking me and Lacey up. I'm gonna fucking kill him." Danny says calmly.
The guys all look at each other uneasily. Danny doesn't say things he doesn't mean.
Archie tries to make light of the situation by laughing. "Come on, Desai. Stop kidding around. Somebody might believe you." As he continues to laugh and Joe and Cole nervously join in.
Danny starts to laugh too. "Yeah, you're right. I'm just kidding. I am gonna get Lacey back though."
And I'm gonna fucking kill whoever did this. Danny thinks to himself.
Joe discreetly texted Sarita to meet him in an empty classroom so that they could discuss things. Joe was scared as hell after he heard what Danny was saying. He has known Danny long enough that when he said something, he meant it. Joe said he had to go to the bathroom. Sarita just got up and left. Nobody really cared where she was going. She met up with Joe in an empty classroom down the hall.
"What?" Sarita says as soon as she enters the room and shuts the door.
"Did you make sure you covered your ass?" Joe asks in a scared tone. He really should be afraid.
"Yeah, why?" Sarita asks.
"Because Danny was talking crazy." Joe says to her.
"Crazy? Crazy how?" Is Sarita's question to him.
"Well, he was talking about killing whoever is responsible for breaking him and Lacey up,"
Sarita's eyes grow huge. "What?" She asks.
"You heard me, Sarita. Did you really make sure that Danny doesn't know we're responsible for that video?" Joe asks impatiently.
"Yeah. That person will never rat me out. We're safe. Why are you so worried?" Sarita replies.
"Uh, have you seen Danny lately? He's about to go over the edge. He's lost without Lacey. And now he's talking about killing somebody. He meant it." Joe says.
"He just needs to get over it and her. This will all blow over soon." Sarita says as she tries to reassure him.
"Danny isn't getting over her anytime soon. Did you actually watch that video?"
"Yeah, I watched it. It was disgusting." Sarita says as she shudders.
"You only think it's disgusting because he's doing her, not you. Danny really loves her." Joe says.
"So?" Sarita asks.
"So, you'd fucking better make sure that Danny never finds out we're behind this." Joe says, the fear evident in his voice.
"And I told you, that person will never rat me out. Stop worrying." Sarita says calmly.
"Is it Rico?" Joe asks.
"No, it's not Rico. Just somebody I have a lot of dirt on. Don't worry about it. Our secret is safe." Sarita says.
"It better be." Joe says as he leaves the classroom.
After English, Danny watched Lacey leave the classroom and go to her locker. She was standing in front of it gathering her things when the guy Kevin from the choir walked up to her locker. It was bad enough that they were acting like they were a couple when they sang that duet earlier, now he was standing at her locker talking to her. Danny saw red when he saw how close Kevin was standing next to her. Danny had a feeling of dread as she smiled at him and grabbed her coat and they left the building together. There really wasn't anything for Danny to be upset about, because they were just gonna meet the other choir members at Johnny Cakes. Besides, Kevin and Lacey were not interested in each other that way. And Kevin had a girlfriend. They were simply friends.
But Danny didn't know that. And it set Danny up to have the worst game he has ever played. When he got to the locker room, he put his pads and uniform on in silence. He didn't even give the team their usual pep talk before any game. Once he got on the field, it was downhill from there. He was totally unfocused and unmotivated. His mind was not on the game at all. He threw passes short or they were overthrown. Several times he ran right into the linemen on the other team. He had even threw two interceptions. The crowd, the team and their coach couldn't believe their eyes. It was sad to watch. Their coach became so frustrated that he grabbed Danny by his face mask and yelled at him. Something that their coach never had to do. Danny didn't even care. He was too busy thinking about Lacey. After their coach had had enough, he pulled Danny out of the game and put the backup quarterback Scott Ogden in. He was no Danny, but right now, Danny wasn't Danny. Danny sat out the rest of the game on the bench in a daze.
It took that for Joe to actually start to feel bad about what he did. And not because his friend was so messed up about his ex girlfriend. But because Danny not being in the game, meant that Danny wouldn't be there to throw passes at him to make him shine.
Saturday afternoon, Judy and Karen agreed to go to lunch. They decided that just because Danny and Lacey broke up, they wouldn't let that affect their newly revived friendship. Judy was the first to arrive and was sitting at the table waiting for Karen. Karen soon arrived at the restaurant and made her way to the table where Judy was waiting. She greeted Judy in her usual fashion, by kissing her on her cheek. Karen sits and they just sit quietly looking at their menus until Judy speaks.
"So, what are we going to do about our kids? I honestly don't think I can take it anymore." Judy says.
Karen exhales. "I don't know, but I know what you mean. I'm depressed now too." Karen admits.
"Me too. I'm sick of hearing Lacey cry at night. She thinks I can't hear her, but I can. It's almost every night." Judy confesses herself.
"Well Danny is too strong to cry, I guess. But he's seriously struggling without her. I've found several broken things in his room."
Judy takes a sip of her tea. "Has he told you what happened?" Judy asks.
"Nope. Refuses to talk about it. He won't tell Vik either. What about you?" Karen asks as she drink from her glass of water.
"No. She just said it didn't work out. Lacey is very stubborn. If she doesn't want to talk about something, there's no way she will. She downplays everything. She hasn't even told Clara, and that's shocking because they tell each other everything. I have no idea what happened." Judy says.
"So, what do we do?" Karen asks. She's open to any suggestions to get her son out of his funk.
"I don't know. I think they'd be furious if we tried to have a meeting with them." Judy says.
"I agree. But we have to do something. Even Sadie misses Lacey. I do too. I miss just seeing her at the house." Karen says.
"Yeah, I know what you mean. I miss seeing Danny pretend not to be nervous around me. I miss how happy Lacey was. It's even rubbed off on Clara. But I think all we can do is pray that they'll somehow work it out. I used to think they were too young to be this involved and engrossed with each other. Now, I long for them to be consumed with each other." Judy admits.
"I agree. All we can do is hope for the best." Karen says as she reaches her hand across the table to grab Judy's, They give each other a light squeeze.
Later that evening, Lacey was getting ready for Regina's party. While she wasn't necessarily in the mood to party, Phoebe's insisting that she come worked on her nerves to the point she couldn't say no. Moreover, she was tired of sitting in the house hiding and feeling miserable. She fully intended to go to Regina's party and dance and have a good time. Maybe after a drink, she would forget her pain for the time being. She decided on a pair of metallic leggings, black shirt and blazer, and back booties. She got ready and waited for Phoebe to pick her up. She didn't even care if Danny would be there, since he most likely would be. She had to get used to seeing him and being ok with it even though they broke up.
Phoebe texted her when she was outside and Lacey left the house to meet her in the driveway. Phoebe was dressed in the almost exact opposite outfit Lacey had on. She was wearing a metallic blouse and black pants. When Lacey gets into the car, Phoebe points it out.
"Hey Lacey. We're twins!" Phoebe says as they both laugh.
"I know. Do you think they'll be able to tell us apart?" Lacey asks as they laugh again.
Phoebe shakes her head. "Nah. But I'm so glad you decided to come. Regina's parties are always awesome."
"Me too. I didn't wanna spend another Saturday night in the house. Thanks for talking me into coming." Lacey says.
"Oh, it's no problem. We're gonna have a blast." Phoebe says as she drives towards Regina's house.
Neither one of them had any idea it would be a night they would never forget.
By the time Lacey and Phoebe made it to Regina's house, the party was in full swing. They could hear the music blasting as they pulled up. Teens were outside, all througout Regina's parents' property. They made their way inside and the house was packed. It looked like all of Green Grove High was there. They saw Regina mingling with her guests. They saw that Sarita was already a little drunk. Lacey and Phoebe figured it'd be best to keep their distance. And Lacey didn't like Sarita sober, so she probably wouldn't like her drunk. They both make their way to the kitchen to get something to drink. They make their way back to the front of the house to chat with Regina. They start to talk for a minute when Phoebe suddenly says, "They're here."
"Who?" Lacey asks. Phoebe points towards the door and she sees. Danny, Joe, Cole, Archie, and Scott walk in together. Lacey locks eyes with Danny for a minute and turns back around. Lacey isn't even surprised so she won't let it ruin her night.
The guys all walk over to them. Danny is still watching Lacey and she's desperately trying not to watch him. She can't help but admit that he looks good in a navy blue Henley, dark blue jeans, and black boots. And his hair is out. Lacey tries to focus on something else but realizes there's no use.
"Excuse me." Lacey says as she makes her way back towards the kitchen. Minutes later, Phoebe comes into the kitchen to find her.
"Are you ok?" Phoebe asks.
"Yup." Lacey says as she takes a sip of her drink.
"Are you sure?"
"Yup." Lacey lies. "Come on. Let's go dance." Lacey says as she pulls Phoebe from the kitchen and into the dining room/dance floor. All of the furniture has been moved and there's a dj in there. Lacey tries to loosen up as she starts to dance. She gets lost in the music for awhile. Danny has watched her dance and forget about her pain. Danny was glad to see her appear to be happy for the moment. He couldn't take his eyes off of her as she danced to the music. He became extremely aroused. It had been so long since he had been with her. It was driving him crazy not being with her, touching her, kissing her, loving her and being inside of her. As she continued to dance, she got the feeling she was being watched. She opened her eyes and saw Danny staring at her. He didn't break eye contact as he raised his beer bottle to his lips to take a sip. She closed her eyes briefly and continued to dance. When she opened them back up, his eyes were still on her. His staring at her was starting to do something to her, so she left the dance floor and headed to the bathroom to get herself together. When she was walking down the hallway, she ran into Joe. One of the last people she wanted to see. Joe stopped her dead in her tracks.
"What do you want Joe?" Lacey asks in annoyance.
"Danny got kicked out of the game yesterday." Joe says in a nasty tone.
"And that's my problem, why?" Lacey asks.
"Because you stopped sleeping with him." Joe says.
"Fuck you, Joe." Lacey says as she tries to walk away from him but he stops her again.
"That's exactly my point. You need to fuck Danny again so he doesn't play like he did yesterday anymore. I saw the way you fucked him on that video. How about you do that to me too? At least I won't record it and show people." Joe says with a smug look on his face. Before he knew it, Lacey punched him square in his face. "You bitch!" He says as he grabs his nose.
"Don't you ever fucking talk to me like that again, asshole." Lacey says as she walks away.
Lacey completely forgot about going to the bathroom. She was ready to leave now, but she didn't want to ruin the night for Phoebe. She decided to head out to the back of the house. It was cold outside, but at least she knew she'd be alone. She just stands there for a little while until she feels it.
"What are you doing here, Danny?" She asks without even having to turn around.
"I miss you." Is all Danny says. "Don't you miss me too?" He asks.
"No." She lies. "My heart doesn't cry out for you anymore." Another lie.
He steps closer to her until he's right behind her. "You and I both know that is not true."
She turns around to face him. "What do you want from me, Danny?" Lacey asks frantically.
He steps even closer. "I just wish..."
"What?!" Lacey asks impatiently.
"I just want..." The words get lost as he pulls her in for a kiss. Somehow, they wind up on the ground and Danny is feverishly kissing her neck. Lacey gets lost in the moment until she realizes where she's at and who she's with.
"Danny. Danny stop." Lacey says as she starts to push him away from her. She gets up off the ground and just looks at him with tears in her eyes. "I have to go."
"Lacey...please." Danny says as he watches her walk away from him yet again.
Lacey heads inside to find Phoebe to tell her she's leaving since she came with her. She finally finds her taking to Sarita.
"Phoebe, I'm leaving. I didn't want you to look for me later on." Lacey says.
"Why are you leaving?" Phoebe asks.
Lacey looks over at Sarita and decides not to divulge the real reason she's leaving. "I'll tell you later." Lacey promises.
"How are you gonna get home?" Phoebe asks in concern. '
"I'll just walk. Or I'll just call my mom to come halfway to get me." Lacey says.
"Lacey. It's dark and it's pretty late. I'll drive you . Let me find Joe to tell him I'll be back. I think he's had too much to drink to drive tonight." Phoebe says.
"Thanks. I'll be outside." Lacey says as she leaves the house and Phoebe goes to search for Joe. He's nowhere on the bottom level of the house, so she goes upstairs. She sees Archie in the hallway with a girl named Amber.
"Have you seen Joe?" Phoebe asks him.
"He was talking to Regina a few minutes ago." Archie says as he goes back to flirting with Amber.
Phoebe makes her way to Regina's room and knocks on the door. "Yeah?" Regina asks. Phoebe can hear people rustling around.
"Have you seen Joe?" Phoebe asks.
"Uh, no. Not since he first got here." Regina says. Phoebe remembers what Archie just told her and wonders if he's lying or if Regina is. She can tell Regina is in her room with a guy.
"Ok." Phoebe says, but she doesn't leave. She has a bad feeling. A few minutes later, Regina's door opens. She walks out first to make sure the coast is clear. She's startled when she sees Phoebe. Phoebe pushes past her and sees Joe getting ready to leave Regina's room. Regina and Joe know they've been caught red-handed. "How long has this been going on?" Phoebe asks.
"Nothing is going on, we were just talking." Joe says, clearly lying.
"Yeah, right." Phoebe says as she turns to leave the house.
Regina was a little happy that they got busted so now they don't have to sneak around anymore. She only partially cared about hurting her friend.
Phoebe is in tears as she makes her way out to her car. Lacey doesn't understand why Phoebe is crying.
"Phoebe, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Lacey asks in concern.
"Regina and Joe are sleeping together." Phoebe says through sobs.
"What? How do you know?" Lacey asks.
"I just caught Joe coming out of her room." Phoebe admits.
That fucking asshole! "I'm sorry, Phoebe." Lacey says.
"Thanks." Phoebe says. She's still crying.
"Anytime. Are you ok to drive, or do you want me to?" Lacey asks.
"Would you?" Phoebe asks.
Lacey gives her her answer as she walks around to the driver's side. They're driving along, when Lacey asks. "Wanna spend the night again? We can make Danny and Joe voodoo dolls." Lacey says as she tries to lighten the situation.
Phoebe laughs. "That sounds like a good idea." Phoebe says.
That Monday at school, tensions were high. Phoebe was ignoring Joe and Regina, Lacey continued to ignore Danny and Joe. She really didn't have anything to say to Regina. When Joe walked into the classroom, he had a black eye. Archie got a kick out of that.
"Dude, how'd you get the shiner?" Archie asks as he starts to laugh.
Danny noticed Lacey's body language changed when Archie asked that. Her body shifted in her seat.
"I guess I had too much to drink at the party." Joe says.
Danny made a mental note to ask Lacey about that later. If Joe did something to get her to give him a black eye, he would do more than give him a shiner.
When they got to Biology, Danny asked her about it.
"Do you know how Joe got that black eye?" Danny asked casually.
Her body did the same thing it did earlier. She stiffened and became tense. "No." She lies.
"I know you're lying Lacey. Did Joe do something to you?" Danny asks calmly.
"No." Lacey lies again. "And I can take care of myself, ok?"
"Ok." Danny says, even though he doesn't mean it. He'll get to the bottom of the origin of Joe's black eye somehow.
That evening Lacey was home in her bedroom doing her homework. Clara was home because her coach was sick and cancelled practice. Clara knocked on her door to let her know she had a visitor.
"It's not Danny, is it?" Lacey asks.
"No, it's not Danny." Clara says.
Lacey heads down the stairs and is shocked to see Danny's father, Vikram standing in her living room. "Hello, Lacey." Vikram says.
Lacey slows down her walking. She can't believe he's here. "Hello, Mr. Desai." Lacey says nervously as she walks over to sit on the couch. "Please, have a seat." Lacey says.
"I know you're probably wondering why I'm here." Vikram says.
"I think I know why." Lacey says."
"Well, I am here to talk about you and Danny." Vikram says.
"I figured that."
"What happened?" Vikram asks.
"I don't want to talk about it." Lacey says.
"He doesn't want to talk about it either. Is what happened that bad that you two can't work this out?" Vikram asks in concern.
"Yes." Lacey says as a tear rolls down her cheek.
"Did he hit you?" Vikram asks.
"No. Danny wouldn't do that." Lacey says surely.
"Did he cheat on you?"
"No. I kind of wish he did, That would hurt less. But I really don't want to talk about the real reason why, Mr. Desai."
"Ok, Lacey. I'm not here to make you feel bad, But something needs to be done." Vikram says.
"Ok. But what do you mean?" Lacey asks wondering what he's going to say to her.
"I can't stand seeing Danny like this anymore. The person living in my house is not my son. He looks like him, but it's not him. Now, remember I'm not trying to make you feel bad, but you're the reason why. I have not seen Danny cry since he was a baby. Very recently, he cried over you." Vikram admits to Lacey.
Lacey can't help but cry herself. "I cry over him too, Mr. Desai."
"I can see that. I know you love him and he loves you too. Danny has no idea I'm here and would be upset if he knew I was here, but can you at least talk to him and consider giving him another chance to make this right? Please, Lacey."
"I can consider it." Lacey says honestly. "I'm not making any promises though."
Vikram stands up to leave. "Ok. Well, I appreciate you considering it. Thank you, Lacey."
"You're welcome." Lacey says as she walks him to the door.
Lacey returned back to her room to cry and to think. She decides to take a shower to relieve the tension building inside of her. Once she gets out, she puts on something comfortable and just lays in her bed to think. She has so many thoughts running through her mind. Her thought process is interrupted when there's a knock at her bedroom door again. Lacey groans in frustration as she writhes in the bed and kicks her legs.
"Yeah?!" Lacey asks in frustration.
It's Clara. "Lacey, you have another visitor." Clara says.
"Tell Danny and his father to fuck off!" Lacey says. She wants them to leave her alone and at least give her a chance to think about it.
"It's not Danny or his father. Just come Lacey and get it over with." Clara says.
"Fine!" Lacey yells as she gets up out the bed. She makes her way downstairs and is again shocked to see who her visitor is. "Cole? What are you doing here?"
"Hi, Lacey. I came to talk to you. And before you think the worst. Danny didn't send me here."
"But this is about Danny, right?" Lacey says shortly. Here we go again. Lacey thinks.
"Yes, it is about Danny. And you too. And me and a few other people." Cold says nervously.
"You can sit down." Lacey says as she sits herself. "Ok, so what did you want to talk to me about?"
"Ok, first off. Please don't hate me. I had no choice." Cole says.
"Hate you? Why would I hate you? I don't particularly care for the football team, but I don't hate you." Lacey says.
"I'm coming to you because you seem to be a pretty sensible girl and I know you can keep a secret." Cole says.
"Yes, I can keep a secret." Lacey admits truthfully.
Cole takes a deep breath. "I'm Rico's boyfriend." Cole says as he pauses to let her take in what he just confessed.
Lacey's eyes get huge. "Is this a joke? And what does that have to do with me and Danny?"
"No, it's not a joke. I'm gay. I'm Rico's boyfriend. He told me he told you that he had a boyfriend on the team, right?"
"Yes, he did. So you gave Rico the video?" Lacey replies.
"Yes. But Danny had nothing to do with it." Cole says lightly and waits for her reaction.
"What?" Lacey asks in anger and confusion.
"Danny had nothing to do with that video. He didn't make a bet with us about you. He didn't know about that video until you showed it to him." Cole confesses.
Lacey lets what Cole just said to her hit her like a ton of bricks. She felt like she had been hit. "Are you fucking kidding me? How did you get it then?" Lacey asks.
"No, I'm not kidding. I got it from Sarita. But I swear I don't know how she got it."
"What?! Oh my god!"
"She threatened to out me if I didn't do it, Lacey. I can't be out and still be on that team. I need to get a scholarship to go to college. I couldn't let her out me."
The last several weeks run through Lacey's mind and she starts to cry. She thinks of how mean and nasty she was to Danny. She thinks of all the pain she went through. All because of a lie. She can't stand the reality of it all and continues to cry. "Do you realize what you've done?" Lacey asks through tears.
Cole swallows hard, "Yes. And I couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't sit back and watch Danny continue to be miserable. He got kicked out of the game Friday. I've been playing football with Danny since we were 6. I've never seen him have a game that bad or get kicked out the game. And I've never seen Danny this upset. Ever. And I can't take the guilt or seeing my brother this hurt anymore. Have you noticed how happy Sarita has been lately?"
"I thought that bitch was just happy that we broke up." Lacey says. "Oh my god. I've been so mean and nasty to him. He kept insisting that he didn't do it and I didn't believe him. I even thought Sarita was in on the bet."
"Well, she was happy that you broke up. She's the reason why. I have no idea how she got that video though, I swear."
"How do I know Danny didn't put you up to this?" Lacey asks.
Cole takes his phone out of his pocket and scrolls through it and then hands the phone to Lacey. Lacey takes it from him and looks at a picture of Rico and Cole kissing. She hands the phone back to him. "Do you believe me now?" Cole asks.
"Yes. Your secret is safe with me. But we need to go and tell Danny." Lacey says.
Cole looks uneasy. "Danny's gonna kill me. He said he would kill whoever was responsible for breaking you two up. He really loves you."
"Danny's not gonna kill you, Cole. I'm not too sure about Sarita though. Are you willing to take me to him so we can talk?" Lacey responds.
"Yes." Cole says.
Lacey stands up to go upstairs and change. She had to talk to him immediately.
Another quick Author's Note. Please do not leave reviews/messages on my tumblr page. I rarely check it. If you don't want people reading your reviews, you can always post them anonymously. Thank you and thanks for reading.