19
Assume Makes an Ass Out of You and Me

It was weird going back to school on Monday. Everything felt a lot like it had that first day, back in September, when I’d been singled out as the new kid. Everyone was staring at me, and Ryan was scowling at passersby; only, this time, it was because their mouths were hanging open in astonishment. That first day I had walked the halls alone, but today I was clinging tightly to Ryan’s hand, and the stares, while unwelcome, weren’t menacing or judgmental, merely curious.

By now, everyone knew about my mother’s death, and the fact that I’d been staying with the Bradley’s. Also, news that Ryan and I were dating had spread like wildfire, and as he walked me to English, hushed voices followed us down the hall.

“I heard they slept together at Rebecca’s party.”

“No way. Ryan wasn’t even there.”

“I heard she’s pregnant.”

“Jackson’s got to be pissed.”

“I heard he cheated on her.”

“She must not have cared, since she’s already dating someone else.”

“So Jackson’s single? Is he in school today? I want to ask him to winter formal!”

“Good luck. I heard he’s still pining after Lacey.”

It was sickening how quickly rumors were formed and spread throughout entire Brookfield East population. After seeing how effective it could be, I’d considered starting one about Jackson and his lecherous ways, but I just couldn’t bring myself to stoop to that level. At least some people believed that he’d cheated (apparently he was known for doing stupid things while drunk). People thinking I was pregnant with Ryan’s love child were humorous enough, but the rumors about me cheating on Jackson were infuriating. I had never once presented myself as the type of person to be unfaithful, and the accusations stung.

Ryan gave my hand a squeeze as we headed for the back corner of Mr. Jonas’s English class. Candy was waiting, and gave me a sympathetic smile.

“Hey, guys.”

“Hey.” I tried to sound cheerful, but Rebecca’s death glares from the front of the room were a bit disheartening. I was trying hard to resist the urge to go over and punch her in the face, and I probably would have done it if Ryan hadn’t been holding onto my hand so tightly.

“How’re you holding up?” she asked me, leaning in so nobody else could hear.

I shrugged. “Okay, I guess. Apparently I’m pregnant with Ryan’s baby.”

Candy grinned. “So I’ve heard. Did you hear the one about Ryan’s family planning to adopt you?”

I balked. “No!”

“Because that wouldn’t make this situation awkward at all,” Ryan laughed, leaning back in his seat. “People are idiots.”

“Agreed.”

While Ryan was busy glaring at anybody who dared to try and approach me, Candy and I huddled together in the corner, our foreheads nearly touching.

“Sorry I called Ryan after you left,” she apologized. “But I figured he’d find out anyway.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said, offering my friend an honest smile. Memories of Ryan’s lips pressed against mine distracted me momentarily, and I added in a dreamy voice, “Everything worked out just fine.”

Candy snorted. “Clearly.” She glanced at Ryan over my shoulder and smiled. “So you two are officially dating now?”

“Officially,” I confirmed.

“Well, it’s about time.”

I shot Ryan a shy grin, then turned back to my friend. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him smile this much. It’s kind of weird.”

“It’s a nice change, though. His evil eye scares the shit out of me.”

I laughed. “Me, too.”

Rebecca glanced over then, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. I doubt she’d ever been at the center of a rumor that didn’t have something positive to say about her. Which reminded me…

“Didn’t you say she dated Ryan for a while?”

Candy nodded. “It was so weird. They, like, never talked, or held hands, or anything. I used to think he was just in it for the sex.” She shrugged. “Now I’m not so sure.”

“It wasn’t the sex,” Ryan said casually, leaning in. “Call me shallow, but I’d just learned to drive, and her dad let me drive his cars around when I was with her.”

I stared at him, unblinkingly. “Say what?”

“I’d just turned sixteen. I was still obsessed with cars and shit. Rebecca’s dad drove an Aston Martin. You would’ve dated his daughter, too. I broke up with her when she wanted to start having sex.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Well, I drive a neon. With a broken side-mirror.”

“I thought you got that fixed,” Ryan said lightly, biting away on his pen cap.

“It still looks stupid,” I replied, “Are you sure you still want to be seen with me?”

Before I could say anything, he cupped my face in his hands and gently pressed a kiss to my lips. From behind me, I could hear Candejah making gagging sounds.

“I’m sure,” he said quietly.

I couldn’t pay attention after that.

The rest of the day passed in a blur. Jackson tried to corner me at lunch, but Candy herded me towards the lunch line, and Ryan must have threatened him, because he didn’t try to talk to me again.

We were just getting out of Ryan’s car when I felt my pulse begin to race, and my palms grow sweaty. I should’ve seen this coming.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I muttered.

A familiar black SUV was parked in the driveway of the Bradley’s home, Jackson’s red mustang blocking it in. The two people I had absolutely no desire to see had decided to ambush me. Fucking great.

“Let’s go,” I hissed, dragging Ryan back down the driveway. I was surprised when he didn’t budge. “Ryan, come on!”

He reached out and pulled me towards him, wrapping his arms around me. I didn’t try to fight him, but I didn’t make any effort to reciprocate the hug. He hadn’t threatened Jackson at lunch – he’d told him to stop by later instead.

“I know you don’t want to talk to either of them, but maybe it’s for the best.”

My eyes grew wide. Even though I’d had a feeling he’d been the one behind this, it still stung. “You called them?” Angrily, I pushed him away and began pacing, my sneakers slapping against the cold cement, my breath forming tiny little puffs as I blew out one angry sigh after another. “Why?”

“Lacey, you ran away from home. How long did you think you could hide from your dad? Sooner or later, he’d come here and check.”

“Yeah, and you could’ve lied,” I snapped.

“And then what? You’d just stay with us for the rest of your life? As much as I like having you here, I don’t think that would work.”

He had a point. Still, talking to my dad, or to Jackson, was not on my to-do list today. In fact, the only list they were on was my ‘people to avoid’ list, and up until now, I’d done an excellent job of steering clear of them both.

From where I stood, I could see Richard’s face pressed against the glass of the living room window, and my cheeks grew flushed. This wasn’t happening. My dad was inside my boyfriend’s house, and who knew how long he’d been waiting. Knowing Richard, he probably would’ve waited all day if it meant that he’d get to talk to me.

I gave Ryan the meanest glare I could muster, then yanked open the front door. I knew I was going to have to talk to Richard sooner or later, but he could just wait.

Fuming, I marched towards my room and slammed the door shut. When I turned around, I nearly ran back out. Jackson was standing beside the bed, his eyes troubled, forehead creased in a frown. I reached for the doorknob, but the tremor in his voice stopped me from making my exit.

“Lacey, wait,” he begged, taking a step forward. “Please.”

I sucked in a breath, bit the inside of my cheeks, and closed my eyes. Never, not once, had Richard even tried to apologize to me, or my mom, for what he’d done. At the very least, Jackson had a conscience, and wanted to make amends. I could afford him the courtesy of apologizing, couldn’t I?

I decided to be big about the whole situation, and waited for my anger to dissipate, then slowly turned to face him.

“You have five minutes. Go.”

He wasn’t going to waste a single one. “I can’t even begin to tell you how sorry I am,” Jackson said in a rush. “After everything you’ve been through with your dad, I can understand why you’d never want to speak to me again, but hear me out.”

I waited expectantly.

“Remember when we met at Rebecca’s party back in September?”

So he actually knew it was me? That was interesting. And here I was, thinking he’d had absolutely no recollection of that night. From the amount of alcohol he’d consumed, I would’ve guessed that he didn’t even remember being there.

“I was drunk then, too. I know it’s a bad excuse, trust me, but I do really stupid things when I’m drunk. And sure, maybe I met you while I was plastered, but it was by far the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“You sure know how to sweet-talk a girl, Jackson,” I quipped. “Three more minutes.”

“After the party, I couldn’t get you out of my head. So I made sure to sit next to you in math, and bump into you in the park. Call me crazy, but I believe in love at first sight.”

My fingers slipped from the doorknob. Despite my best efforts, my heart was beginning to thaw. Damn him and his irresistible apologies.

“And then you said you’d go out with me, and I’d never had such an awesome time with a girl. You didn’t complain about having to go to Regina’s concert, you sang along with her in the car-”

“Someone had to,” I interjected. “It’s not her fault her older brother is tone-deaf.” The corner of my lips twitched.

Encouraged, Jackson began rambling again. “You’re smart, Lacey. You have all these great ideas, and all these plans for your life. And after everything you’ve been through – your dad cheating on your mom, moving, your mom dying, now me – you can still smile. I don’t know how you do it, but you amaze me.”

Cautiously, he took another step towards me and reached out for my hand. Warm fingers curled around mine, and despite my better judgment, I closed the gap between us.

“And if you can’t forgive me, I understand. But you have to know that Rebecca Eden and I… Lacey, I would never do that to you. I was mad, and I was drunk, and she was just… there, you know? My mind was saying one thing, but my body was doing another, and then I saw you, and… God, Lacey, I’m sorry. I am so, so, so sorry.”

I sighed, and gave his hand a small squeeze. “It probably didn’t help that I was spending so much time with Ryan.”

Jackson was brutally honest when he answered. “No, it didn’t. But I think I knew, even before you did, how things were going to end up. I still don’t understand how you could put up with a person who took nude photos of you-”

I cringed at the memory; it was one I had definitely tried to suppress.

“- and I hate the fact that he seems to understand you better than I ever could.” He sighed. “I really like you, Lacey, but so does he. And you obviously couldn’t see it, but everyone else could. And it made me jealous, sure, but I just tried to ignore it. That worked out fine until you moved in with his family. Every time I called, he said you weren’t around, and when I’d come over, he’d say you weren’t up to seeing people, let alone me. So I got mad. I’m a guy, Lace – I get jealous.”

I hung my head. “I guess you had a good reason, though.”

Jackson shrugged. “Like I said, I saw it coming.”

He paused, and when I looked up, he was staring intensely at a photo on the dresser. It was Ryan’s senior photo, and he was staring into the camera, that cocky grin I was so fond of plastered to his face. “He’s a good guy, Lacey. He’s kind of a jerk, but he’s not going to screw up like I did.”

I certainly hoped not.

I waited for Jackson to keep going, but it seemed as if he’d said everything he’d come over to say. “Time’s up,” I murmured. It had been up for nearly twenty minutes.

“I know.” He gave me a small smile. “See you at school tomorrow?”

I nodded.

“Okay. Well…” An awkward silence settled over the room until it was so stifling that we both began to laugh. “Take care,” he chuckled.

I allowed him to kiss my cheek, then opened the door and watched him disappear down the hallway.

Slowly, I let the door swing shut, and plopped down on my bed. I knew what was coming next, but I wasn’t ready to face him, not yet. Jackson’s apology had deflated my angry balloon, so to speak, and it was always easier to talk to Richard when I was in a bad mood.

A quiet knock sounded at the door, and I groaned. “Go away, Richard. Seriously. Not today.”

But I was just a kid – who I was I to order around a 40-something-year-old who was biologically my father?

Obviously my request was ignored, because the man in question poked his head into the room and sighed. “Nice hiding place.”

“What part of ‘go away’ don’t you understand?” I snapped. Clearly, just seeing Richard’s face was enough to make me angry. And now he was invading my personal space? Even better.

“I’m not leaving,” he said, closing the door behind him. “Not until we talk.”

“I have nothing to say to you.”

Just to prove my point (or to act childish – I wasn’t sure which), I buried my head in my pillow and pulled the covers over my head.

Apparently, acting like a two-year-old wasn’t the greatest plan I’d ever come up with, because Richard just pulled everything away from me and sat down on the edge of the bed.

“Lacey, hear me out-”

“No!” I cried, sitting up and glaring at him. “Here’s all I have to say to you: I’m not moving back to Illinois. I don’t want to, and you can’t make me. I-”

“You don’t have to move.”

“- absolutely, positively will not go. My friends are here, my boyfriend is here, Grandma and Grandpa are here, and I like Milwaukee. A lot better than Lake Forest, to be honest. I-” I stopped, cocking one eyebrow. “Wait. What?”

“You don’t have to move if you don’t want to.”

My ears had to be deceiving me. After all this, he wasn’t even going to put up a fight? God, I was good.

“I don’t?” My anger dissipated in a flash.

“No.”

I was grateful, but confused. “Oh. Um… any particular reason why you’re letting me stay?” It was too good to be true.

“For christ’s sake, Lacey, you ran away! I’ve been looking for you all week, and nobody would tell me where you were. Your grandparents are the most unhelpful people I think I’ve ever met. Do you have any idea how worried I was?”

“Frankly, I don’t really care. And that didn’t answer my question.”

Richard rolled his eyes. “That’s not the point. The point is that you were so desperate to stay in Milwaukee than you ran away. If that doesn’t say ‘I don’t want to leave,’ I don’t know what does.” He sighed. “Look, Lace. I lost you once, and I’m not going to lose you again. So I’m going to stay in Milwaukee. If you-”

“I know I can’t stay here,” I interrupted. “You don’t need to give me the birds and the bees talk. Mom already tried that.”

Richard held up a hand to stop me. “I was going to say that you have a choice. You can either stay with me, and we can try and start over, or you can stay with your grandparents. It’s entirely up to you.”

I couldn’t believe this. For being in his mid-forties, this was by far the most adult-like thing my dad had ever done. And, oddly enough, I liked him a little more for it.

“I’m staying with Grandma and Grandpa,” I said. I didn’t miss the brief look of disappointment that washed across Richard’s face. “But,” I added, taking a deep breath, “maybe we could have dinner once or twice a week. You know, try to play catch-up.”

Next to Ryan’s latest obsession with smiling, the startling grin on Richard’s face was the second most frightening thing I’d ever seen. “Thanks, kiddo. I promise, things are going to be different this time.”

“You’ve got one chance,” I warned. But I had a feeling he wasn’t going to screw up this time. He’d lost the love of his life – he couldn’t afford to lose his daughter, too.

“You won’t regret this, Lace,” he said, still smiling.

“We’ll see.”

I accepted the awkward one-armed hug Richard offered, then waited for him to leave. He was just about to close the door when he turned around and pointed an accusing finger in my direction.

“I may be letting you stay with whomever you want, but I am still your father. You’re going back to your grandparent’s house tonight, do you hear me? There will be no sleepovers with this boyfriend of yours.”

I rolled my eyes. “Got it. You can leave now.”

He hesitated a moment longer, but I offered a small smile to let him know I wasn’t angry. Satisfied, the doorway cleared, and I was left sitting alone in the Bradley’s guestroom, an empty suitcase at my feet.

How everything had worked out the way it had was beyond me, but I wasn’t about to question God’s motives right now. I was staying in Milwaukee, Jackson and I were… well, we were working on being friends, and my dad and I were going to try and rebuild our relationship. I was forced to wonder if Ryan had known about all of this when he’d invited my father over. If he’d known I’d be shipped off to Lake Forest, I doubt he would’ve even tried to arrange this little meeting.

I was slowly folding clothes and putting them back in my suitcase when the boy in question stepped into the room.

“So, how’d it go?” he asked innocently, grabbing a shirt and folding it.

I gave him a sly smile and began emptying out a dresser drawer. “Oh, I think you know perfectly well how it went. You wouldn’t have invited my dad over if you hadn’t.”

“True,” Ryan said with a grin. “But it was worth it?”

I thought for a moment, then nodded. “I think so, yeah.”

“Good. In that case, my mom wants you to stay for dinner. Something about our last meal together, or something.”

I chuckled, and firmly closed the lid of my suitcase. “I wouldn’t want to deprive her of that.”

Stella Bradley, it turned out, had gone all-out for this supposed momentous occasion. There were quesadillas, tacos, burritos, and salad, and an ice cream sundae bar for desert. Everyone was in a good mood, except for Cheyenne, who had burst into tears when she found out I was leaving.

The little girl followed me out to the car, her arms wrapped around my leg. The fact that my suitcase kept bumping her didn’t seem to matter, because she refused to let go. Even when my things had been loaded into the car, and Ryan had started the engine, she still refused to let go.

I squatted down in front of her, taking her tiny hands in mine. “Cheyenne, honey, I have to go. I can’t stay with you guys anymore. I have to go home.”

“But I like having you here,” she whimpered, throwing her arms around my neck.

I stroked her back as she cried, then gave her a huge hug as I stood up. “I promise I’ll come back and visit all the time.”

“Because you’re in love with my brother?”

I could see Ryan smiling out of the corner of my eye, and I laughed. “Something like that.”

“Promise you’ll come over tomorrow?”

“I promise,” I said, holding up my hand. “Scout’s honor.”

I guess Cheyenne didn’t know what that meant. “Pinky-swear?”

I grinned. “Pinky-swear.”

We locked little fingers, exchanged one more hug, and then I climbed into the passenger seat, Ryan’s hand reaching out to capture mine.

“You do realize,” he said, backing out of the driveway, “that you’re going to have to finger paint with her tomorrow, and play Barbies?”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “I know. I don’t mind.”

He was silent for a moment, then looked over at me before pulling out onto the street. “I’m going to miss having you sleep across the hall from me.”

“You’ll get over it,” I assured him.

For the rest of the ride, we sang along with the radio, doing poor imitations of 50 Cent and Justin Timberlake.

The door to our apartment was decorated with streamers and balloons when we arrived, and I groaned.

“Seriously?” was all I could manage before Grandma threw open the door and wrapped her arms around me.

From the way she was holding me, all I could manage to do was awkwardly pat her back, grinning at Gramps over her shoulder.

“Hey, kiddo,” he winked, then offered his hand to Ryan. “Thanks for helping us out.”

“Not a problem,” Ryan said, and graciously accepted the rib-crushing hug my grandma gave him.

Once we’d been sufficiently suffocated, we were allowed inside.

“Home, sweet home,” I whispered. While I’d only been gone a few days, it felt as if it had been years.

“There’s a letter on the table for you,” Gramps said, leaning against the counter. “I think you’re going to want to open it.”

I glanced over at Ryan, but he just shrugged, so I dropped my bag and picked up the envelope. In the top left corner was the official logo for Berkeley. The envelope was thick, and I felt my palms grow sweaty as I slid my finger beneath the flap and tore it open.

I scrambled to unfold the top piece of paper, then read, “Dear Miss Radner, we are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at the University of California – Berkeley.”

For a moment, I froze.

And then I began to scream. I turned to face my grandparents, who were grinning, and Ryan, who was outright cheering, looking nearly as excited as I felt.

“Are… are you serious?” I asked, staring down at the paper. “Really?”

“You’re going to Berkeley!” Ryan cried, pointing at each word in turn. “We both are.”

“Oh!” I’d completely forgotten. “Oh! Wow!”

He enveloped me in a huge hug, and somewhere between the hugs and the kisses, we started jumping, too (or maybe it was just me. I was too excited to tell).

“C’mon,” he said finally, hauling my suitcase towards my bedroom. “Let’s get you unpacked. We have some celebrating to do tonight.”

As I stared around at my grandparents, and at Ryan, I felt my heart swell. Despite everything, I had somehow made it through, and the light at the end of the tunnel was still shining.

It didn’t take long to unpack. We were done in less than fifteen minutes, and together, the two of us fell back onto my bed, the old box springs creaking in protest. Ryan reached over and smoothed a piece of hair away from my face, toying with the strand as he stared at me, his eyes shining.

“Good to be home?” he asked.

I grinned. “I’ve always been home.”

He leaned in and pressed his lips to mine, and I giggled.

“What?”

“Nothing,” I said, pulling him back towards me. “You may be an ass, but I really do like you.”

Ryan grinned. “So you keep saying.”

And as I nestled myself in the comfort of his arms, I breathed a sigh of contentment. This really was home, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

FIN

A/N: May 11th, 2008

For those of you who enjoyed DMAS, my latest story, Breaking Brian Deacon, has a very similar feel, and you may enjoy it just as much, if not more (personally, I like it better than this one)!

Summary: Brian Deacon has been trying to win my heart since kindergarten, when he handed me a valentine with a worm inside. Too bad he doesn't understand the meaning of the word 'no.' 13 years later he's still trying, but I'm standing my ground. Or trying to.

Excerpt:
Brian Deacon has been trying to win my heart since kindergarten, when he handed me a homemade valentine covered in mud. You can imagine my disgust when I opened it and a round, fat, slimy worm plopped into my hand. I was a five-year-old girl who liked to play princess and watch Cinderella over and over again; having a worm anywhere near me was like the kiss of death to whomever had put it there. I’d tossed the card back at Brian, screamed bloody murder, and ran off to tell the teacher. Needless to say, it had been the start of a string of very memorable Valentine’s Days, though that one still makes me cringe every time I think about it. To this day, he still claims that he accidentally dropped it in the mud while running to catch the bus, and that he hadn’t had time to make me a new one before the day was over.

I wasn’t buying it.

In first grade, I arrived on February 14th, already expecting the day to end in disaster. I was wearing my favorite lacey pink dress with matching Mary Janes, and my mom had spent an extra hour curling my hair that morning, securing one side with an extravagant satin ribbon. All of my girl friends had complimented me on my ensemble, and even a few boys had been brave enough to tell me I looked “like a girl,” which was quite a compliment, coming from a group of guys who often had their fingers shoved up their nose, and had secret peeing contests on the side of the building during recess.

There’d been a snowstorm that day, so we’d been forced to stay inside. I can still remember sitting at my desk, eating my peanut butter and jelly sandwich, when a sickeningly sweet voice said from behind me, “You look really pretty today, Maggie.”

A handful of daisies were shoved into my hands, along with another homemade card, this time trimmed in lace. The writing on the front had clearly been done by Brian’s mom, because I knew for a fact that his penmanship was worse than chicken scratch.

With a sigh, I flipped open the card, expecting a worm to fall out into my lap; I was pleasantly surprised when I found the inside void of any disgusting creepy-crawly things. There was a lollipop taped to one side, and the other read, in curling, feminine penmanship, ‘Roses are red, Violets are blue, You should be my girlfriend, Because I’m in love with you.’

I stared at the card for a long time. Brian was still standing beside me, probably trying to gauge my reaction. He was fidgeting with his oversized belt buckle, and finally I couldn’t take it anymore and turned to glare at him.

“Would you please stop tapping that stupid thing?”

He stopped immediately and just stood there, staring at me, eyes wide and innocent. I wasn’t a mean kid, but I was growing sick of Brian’s stalking. I was six, and I certainly didn’t want a boyfriend. I knew all about boyfriends; my mom had gone through four of them in the past two months. Brian needed to get a grip.

“So,” he said after a while, shuffling his feet, “will you be my girlfriend?”

I sighed, and shoved the card into my backpack as the bell rang. “No."

A/N: So, this is it, guys! The final chapter. It's been fun, but I didn't see any point in dragging out the ending any longer. My characters have said what they had to say, and it's time to say goodbye. I'm sad that it's over, but also excited because that brings my total of complete stories up to two! Also, I wanted to finish this one so that it could become a nominee for SKoW's best cliche - complete category, rather than incomplete. So that was my motivation :-) I know it's a bit rushed, but I plan on eventually coming back to fix it.

I hope you all enjoy the ending, and I'd definitely appreciate your thoughts on the final chapter and/or overall story once you're done.

For all of my readers, thank you so much, it's been fun! You guys have made it worth it.

Until we meet again!

Lots of love,
Sammy

THANKS TO: Silencia, Vacant Souls, Nefertiry, SuperCUTEJensen, Kyrina, mandybeth, ObliviousWanderer, Pointy Objects, LethargicLove, InsaneRomantic15, Kbelle1, Amelia, helplessly in love, Into the Roses, sunny-raindrop, adnama3121, goodbyemylover, cookymonster, Twinkle Star Bell, midnightbeauty, Pink and Black Sharpies, woodstock1969, tangledshadows, Kohlomere, Guacamole, Entice, an-angelsmiles, XxAmberRomancexX, SummerBaby94, InnerBeauty507, precious-memories, Andrien, losingmyfaith, ophelia, Selene Ice Queen, duckliy543, fantasyrocker561, RoseofFlame, obsessivecompulsivehobbit, Captain Walsh, eternally-yours, Pieces of the sun, Kjersti, kagomefreak, Diinaxx, britty-tt, alidy, instantvoodoo, and CATpuccino. for your reviews!