Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Lexi’s life had been a bit of a whirlwind lately. After her play, her life had changed quite a bit. It wasn’t necessarily better or worse, it was just different.

Cassie had come back home and then left again, getting back to Nate a few weeks after he kicked her out. Lexi had the room to herself again, and probably would for a while.

That summer, Cassie moved out of state together with Nate. Nate was going to some prestigious business school near Boston. It wasn’t Harvard, but it was likely just as expensive.

Cassie could never afford such a school, she didn’t even get accepted into one there. So, Cassie was doing some waitressing job at a restaurant now, occasionally receiving some money from their mother.

Lexi didn’t miss Cassie.

Lexi had rekindled her relationship with Rue after the play, and they grew closer again, quickly. She was happy to see her childhood best friend do better, now that she was actually staying sober and wasn't addicted to another person either.

They hung out together often, gossiping about Nate, Cassie, Cal, and all the other people in town that they had some crazy stories about. They also spent hours playing detective and lawyer, as they theorized ways to get Fezco, Ashtray, and Faye, out of prison.

They saw each of them occasionally, although Ashtray never really seemed up for it, especially not during the first few visits. Ashtray had been in a youth detention center where he was awaiting trial.

The first time Rue and Lexi visited him there, he’d clearly been uncomfortable with Lexi’s presence. They didn’t really know each other all that well, after all. But at some point, Ashtray pulled her into the conversations, telling her about the day it all went down and how excited Fez had been for her play. Those words weighed heavy on her shoulders.

Fez was a bit of a different story. Rue and Lexi had reached out, but Fez had told them to stay away. He didn’t want them anywhere near him, not in the penitentiary, not in the courthouse, not on the phone. But as they kept pushing, and bombarding him with letters, eventually, Fez called Rue to let them know they could come to see him sometime.

From that meeting on, Fez called Lexi every week, for as long as he could, and they talked about life as they did before Fez was locked up. It was nice to have that back.

Faye was the easiest to talk to. From the beginning, she was enthusiastic about seeing both Rue and Lexi. Faye asked them to keep meeting her, cause she was so lonely there. Lexi felt so sorry for her, so she went to see her whenever she could.

Rue also tried, but she just didn’t feel as obligated. Faye talked a lot, more than Rue could sometimes handle. But Lexi felt it was nice, to have someone vent to her. Somehow, it made all the problems she’s ever had seem so minimal.

Faye was the one that saved the day. Faye was the narrator of what went down at Fezco’s place the day the police busted the door in. She was good, bending the story in just the right places.

Both Fez and Ashtray weren’t talking until they heard the story that Faye had come up with through their lawyer. Because it was slightly brilliant, and it might just help them walk free.

Faye had told the detectives the truth, mostly. Yes, it was Ashtray that had stabbed Custer that day. But Custer’s hand was moving towards his pants, where he usually carried a 9mm.

Faye had only been able to think of one thing during that moment, what if Custer killed Mouse? Was that why he was now randomly putting the blame on everyone around them? First Laurie, now Fez. Custer could sometimes be aggressive.

Or at least, that’s what she told the detectives of course. Those are the questions she asked herself out loud while being questioned. Those are the questions that clouded the heads of the detectives for days on end after. Especially after they realized that Custer had indeed been carrying a 9mm in his waistband.

But Faye wasn’t really in there for the incident that had occurred that day. She had a whole different trial awaiting her. Although, it was also a murder trial. Or a self-defense trial. As she’d liked to call it.

Detectives had showed her the video on which it was clear that Faye pushed the hotel manager over the fence, a couple floors down. But the video was blurry, and there was no audio recording.

So, he’d threatened her, she told the detective. He was going to rape and kill her, and Faye had been so afraid, she pushed him off. The universe was truly working in her favor, because it turned out the guy was on the list of sexual offenders.

For Lexi, time seemed to pass rather quickly. Her summer was quite okay, she went on a road trip with Maddy before she had to leave off for community college. It was nice, driving along the California coast, visiting Los Angeles and San Francisco. They had fun.

When she was back in her hometown, and not visiting one of her friends in prison or hanging out with Rue, she managed the convenience store, or checked on Fez’ grandma in the nursing home she was placed in.

Some bad things had happened, and other really bad things had happened. For starters, Nate had come to her house one night, and told her he was going to hurt her, sometime, someday. It was odd, and he left with her sister to Boston the next day.

It didn’t really scare her. Nor did the boys that came after her after her play. It was just slightly annoying to constantly be hearing that guys needed to bone Lexi Howard, or else they’d die with regrets. It was mostly a joke, and it was funny until she needed to push drunk guys’ hands off her at some party.

The really bad things that had happened that summer, had nothing to do with her play. Of course, there was Fez being put behind bars, that had scared her. But she was positive now that he’d get out, especially with the lawyer his grandma had secured for both her sons long before.

What had also scared her, was the man she saw one night while driving home after closing up the convenience store. A slender figure, dark hair, dark eyes. He’d stopped her dead in her tracks. “Lexi,” he’d said her name. “Dad?” she had asked.

It was him. And he’d begged her to come see him sometime, at his new place. He’d been doing better, he told her.

He didn’t look better.

Still, she couldn’t bring it up to say no. He wrote down a phone number and an address on a card.

“Friday?” he’d asked her. Lexi didn’t have the guts to say no. Especially not in this dimly lit street, with no one around. They had a time and date set, and Lexi, too good for her own good, showed up.

But her father wasn’t there. There was a scary man that patted her down and a scary woman that spoke politely of selling her to old men if she didn’t get her the money her dad apparently stole from her in the form of drugs.

Lexi felt herself tremble as she spoke. She didn’t know why she spoke, but she couldn’t help asking why she was the one who needed to do this, get this money, and not her dad. “He gave you up as insurance,” the woman smiled at her. “I think you could make a lot of money, honey. He was definitely not wrong.”

“Why shouldn’t I just go to the police right now?” she’d blurted out, stupidly. The smile on the lips of the lady didn’t falter, not one bit. “Oh, Alexis, sweetie,” she begun, “You care about your dad, still, right? If you go to the police, so will I. And don’t forget I have a lot of men out here, dying to hurt you.” God, she had the most monotone voice ever.

“You will not put Laurie in danger, she don’t deserve that shit. I will personally fuck you up, if you try doing something dumb. I don’t give a fuck about you being a little girl.” The big man now spoke, his voice pertaining a lot of anger.

 A shiver went down Lexi’s spine. Her eyes were filling up with tears, she needed to get out of here. “I’ll get you the money,” she’d said while heading for the exit. “One month,” she heard Laurie behind her, “You have one month.”

Two weeks later, Fezco was a free man. His trial went smoothly, and the only thing they actually charged him with was obstruction of justice. The only piece of evidence that they had on that was a recording of him telling Ash that he’d go down for him, that he’d tell cops he killed Custer, not Ashtray.

In the end, Fezco stayed silent, and so did Ash. Which is why he really didn’t actually even obstruct justice. And thus, his trial did not take long. The prosecution had no case.

For Ash and Faye, it would take a bit longer. Their trials would start that month, and they’d have to convince a jury of their innocence.

So his life wasn’t back to normal until then, and even then, when Ash and Faye were back out, it wouldn’t be the same. Ash would need to go stay with foster parents and his business was already absolutely shattered. Now that cops had their eyes on him, he couldn’t go on with this thing.

Besides that, he was offered a deal in exchange for having the charges against him dropped. That deal would have him link up with Laurie and wear a wire. It was not something he was willing to do.

But that did mean they were onto Laurie, and so, he couldn’t do business with her anymore. He’d pay her off and move on. It was the only thing he could possibly do, but where he’d get the money from for his rent and all, he didn’t know.

The convenience store would not be enough money, but maybe he could get Ash to learn him a thing or two about crypto. He wasn’t sure yet how he’d do it, but he knew he had to. He had hopes and dreams of things bigger than this is in life.

The farm, the kids, and a beautiful girl by his side. That was what he wanted. And his trip to prison had only confirmed that. He also knew what he wanted the kids to look like, and he knew what he wanted the beautiful girl by his side to look like as well.

He just was never really sure about it. Well, he was sure he wanted it to be her. He just wasn’t sure that feeling was reciprocated. They had talked for hours on end, cried to some movie, held hands, and hell, she’d even been there for him when he went to prison.

But so had Rue. Well, he perhaps hadn’t really held her hand like he did that day on the couch with Lexi. But, what if she saw him the way Rue did? Like family? He wasn’t sure how to read her.

And he didn’t want to make a move that scared her away. Like, he needed her. Be it as a friend, or more than that. He’d obviously prefer it to be more than that, but if that wasn’t possible, then he was going to have to be fine with just being her friend.

Chapter Text

When Fez steps through the door of his home the day he's a free man again, he expects it to be a mess. He expects to be confronted with the broken windows, a couch stained with blood.

But the house had been thoroughly cleaned. A new window had been placed where the shattered one once sat covered with a wooden panel. The couch was as good as new.

"We tried our best with whatever we could get," Rue states, reading his expression. "You're kidding now?" Fezco huffs, clearly impressed.

"Y'all didn't have to do none of this," He stares at the couch, clean, stain-free. A silence hangs over them.

"We wanted to," Lexi finally says.

Inside of her head, her brain was working hard to analyze the situation, and gather the appropriate response. She didn't want to hurt Fez, knowing that he was obviously still upset over Ash being in prison while he was roaming free.

"C'mon now, let me pour you two a drink. Lex, you want a beer? Rue, you not getting no alcohol, a Dr. Pepper or something will have to do," Fez turns himself to the two girls.

Rue grins. "Yeah, 'course, Dr. Pepper it is. But I do suppose we need to run by the gas station for it. Lex and I didn't restock your fridge over here."

Fez brings out a smile. "A'ight, now that's too bad, kinda disappointed here. Not gonna lie," He jokes, "But yeah, let's drop by the gas station. Wanna see what's Lexi done with it."

It's now Lexi's turn to laugh. "Don't worry, I haven't sorted your inventory by color or something. Left it exactly how I found it, promise." She blurts out.

Fezco shoots her a smile, and for a moment she feels her cheeks burn up. She quickly drops her gaze towards the floor, afraid he's caught her.

When Lexi thinks about the gas station, she feels an overwhelming feeling of guilt come over her. She took care of it, on her own accord. She had wanted to help Fez.

The gas station had been important to Fez, and it needed to stay open to survive. So as long as Lexi could open the gas station a couple nights a week, it would pay the place's bills.

But now that she was in actual need of money, the last couple shifts she worked had felt like she'd been doing it for her. She'd always taken a small part of the money, as Fez had insisted she'd do.

And she knew it hadn't really changed, she still took the same amounts of money. But she'd been opening the gas station more often, taking on more shifts. She wasn't really doing it for Fez anymore, it almost felt like she was really doing it for herself instead.

So when Fez once more thanked her when they made it to the gas station, a pit filled her stomach. "Yo Lex, I really do appreciate what you did here. Keepin' this place alive, that means the world to me." He says as they walk in.

"It was no issue! I'm happy to help out here, still, anytime." Lexi offers, secretly hoping to be able to get more shifts. She can't help it.

"No way, ma. You done enough," He shakes his head. "Now, did you want a beer or sum'?" He asks, heading over towards the fridge.

"Lexi will not drink beer to save her life. She will only drink one of those teeth rotting mix drinks, where you don't actually taste the alcohol," Rue truthfully speaks, half laughing.

"Hmm, Rue's right. Beer's not my thing, I'll have a -- uh, a Minute Maid," Lexi walks over to Fez, opening up the fridge to grab a bottle.

Fez glances over at her. "Guess I shoulda known that Lexi Howard don't drink beer." He speaks.

"She's way too smart for that shit, anyways," Rue adds. Lexi shrugged, "I don't know, a vodka cranberry doesn't seem that much smarter," She notes.

"Lexi wildin'." She hears Fez say, her cheeks turning red again. "No, but cranberry juice is like, really, really healthy. Helps with a UTI too," Rue says.

"Okay, alright. Whatever," Lexi shook her head, a playful smile on her face.

Fez threw a bottle of Dr. Pepper in the direction of Rue, and she gracefully caught it. He then grabbed a beer for himself.

"Fez, what'd you think of a party, tomorrow night?" Rue suddenly asks. Fez looks a bit taken aback by the question, but then answers. "I’on know. Whose party is it?"

"Well, it's not really like, planned yet. Just in my head. But I thought we needed a welcome back Fezco party, and I was thinking Lexi's place 'cause her mom's not home," Rue explained.

This was news to Lexi. "What?" She questioned her friend.

"Hell, Rue, maybe not the best idea." Fez huffed.

"I think a party would be fun! But at my place Rue? I don't know... Like how many people would be there?" Lexi furthered her questioning, while indicating her support of a party.

“Just a couple, it doesn’t have to be a lot. Like, you can invite Ethan, and BB. Maybe Kat, if Ethan’s okay with that. I can ask Elliott to be there.” Rue says.

Elliott had been back to being Rue’s friend for a little while, as he’d actually sobered up after seeing Rue doing so much better. Lexi had been a bit suspicious after seeing them hang out again over the summer, but she quickly came to realize that it was different this time, better.

“Hmm,” Lexi nodded. “I’m okay with that.” She says. The girls now looked at Fez.

“Yeah, let’s do it. Party time,” Fez drawled.

Rue raised her Dr. Pepper bottle in the air. “Cheers to that!” She exclaims.

It was the next day, 4 PM. Lexi was going through her closet, looking for what it was that she could wear to impress a certain someone. She eventually ends up going for a white collared blouse with a black tennis skirt.

In the living room she has a table set up with some bottles of liquor and other drinks, although she’s asked everyone to bring their own booze, too.

Her phone pings, and secretly she hopes for a text from Fez. So when she reads the name, she’s slightly disappointed.

BB: yo i invited some cool ppl 4 tonight

Her heart jumped.

Lexi: what do u mean? it was kinda supposed to be a small thing haha

She hoped BB didn’t actually invite everyone she knew. This wasn’t supposed to be a big thing.

BB: rlly? sorry

BB: can uninvite some but not sure they will believe me

Okay. Lexi tried to calm herself down, but it was kind of hard to do so when her mind had all the possible doom scenarios lined up. What if Fez got mad about it? It was his welcome back party, after all.

Lexi: how many people did u invite?

It couldn’t possibly be that many, right?

BB: I tweeted ab it

BB: hella ppl say they going

BB: is only ppl from this town tho, dont worry

Shit. Lexi went straight to BB’s twitter and looked at what the hell she had been posting.

Badbitchbb on Twitter (3.15 PM): 4 all u @ east highland theres a dope party tonite at lexi howards u welcome at 9PM

Badbitchbb on Twitter (4.08 PM): sorry life sucks partys cancelled

The first tweet got over 30 replies, and more than 200 likes. She didn’t really believe that people would actually listen to what she stated in her second tweet.

Her index finger slipped to her contacts list, and before she knew it she was waiting on Fez to pick up his phone.

“Shorty,” She heard Fez say once he’s picked up his phone.

“Fez,” Lexi started, “I am so sorry, I really wanted this party to be a small thing, but BB just posted it somewhere and now God knows how many people are going to be showing up here tonight, I don’t even know if we got space here for all those people, it’s going to be such a mess, I don’t know if--,” She was rambling, but Fez interrupted her.

“Yo, yo! Slow down, Lex. Take a breath,” He says.

She’s silent for a moment, embarrassed about her rambling. “Sorry,” She mumbles.

“No need fo’ that.” Fez says, and Lexi can only imagine the grin that’s present on his face.

She took a breath, like he told her to. “You know, whatever happens, it’s fine. I don’t care about this being small or big. S’ not a problem. Tomorrow, I’m helping you clean your house, it’s finna be all neat before yo mom gets back. If you got any valuable shit in your living room, maybe put it somewhere else?” Fez suggests.

Lexi nods. She hadn’t really thought about it clearly.

“You’re right,” She then simply states.

“’Course I am.” She hears him laugh, and then she does too. “I’m comin’ over, alright? I’ll help you with the house.” Fez says, and it sounds like he’s already made his mind up about this more than it is an offer.

“Okay,” She accepts. “Then I see you in a bit,” Lexi closes the conversation.

“I’ll be there at 7, Lexi Howard.” Fez says, before ending the phone call.

As Lexi puts her phone down, she stares at her outfit in the mirror. It could use a little something. She goes through her closet again, then settles on a pair of fishnets to go beneath the tennis skirt.

When it’s finally 7, and Fez is waiting at the door, she feels his eyes scanning her outfit quickly, but thoroughly. Instantly, she feels herself becoming weak. She mentally curses herself.

“Let’s get going,” Fez says, as he takes in the house’s interior. This is his first time at the house. His gaze lingers on some of the pictures of younger Cassie and Lexi. “Real cute,” He points at one of the picture frames.

Lexi’s face is all scrunched up as she shakes her head, “No, no, let’s not look at those.” She laughs.

“Hold up, I’m taking a picture of the room and where everything’s at. So when I put it back tomorrow, I actually know where to put it, you know.” She takes out her phone and starts taking pictures.

“Let’s get all these picture frames and put them down in the garage. Actually, all this stuff should probably go to the garage.” She points at the stuff on the cabinets. “Sure,” Fez says, and he picks two picture frames off the cabinet, looking at the photos inside them.

They walk back and forth from the living room to the garage and then also from the kitchen to the garage, until the party environment is emptied of all valuables.

“Good?” Fez asks when the living room and the kitchen are basically empty. “Yeah,” Lexi affirms. “Thanks for the help,” She expresses her gratitude.

“It was nothing,” Fez countered. Lexi wants to argue that it wasn’t nothing, that it really meant a lot to her, but the doorbell goes. It’s only 8 PM, but Rue’s already here.

“I’m so excited!” Rue jumped up, before giving Fez a hug. “Welcome back, Fez. I think we’ve all missed our favorite drug dealer and friend here,” Rue says, as she pulls away. Fez clearly doesn’t really know what to say, and Rue walks into the house.

“We’re going to get Lexi drunk tonight,” She says.

“Hell no, Rue.” Fez retorts.

Lexi doesn’t really know what to make of that. Does Fez not want to see Lexi drunk? Fez had never seen her drunk. He wouldn’t know if she was annoying when she was drunk. Lexi kind of wanted to get drunk tonight, but it just wasn’t a good idea. With the party being inside her own house and all.

“Hell yes, Rue.” Rue says. “Drunk Lexi is incredibly entertaining, Fez. I think it’s really something you’d need to see for yourself.” Rue goes on, and Lexi feels slightly ashamed about the past couple of parties she’s been to, getting pretty much drunk at all of them.

She’d been hanging with her head over a stranger’s toilet way too many times this last summer.

“No, Rue. Not tonight. It’s my own house, I have to take care of this party,” Lexi shuts the idea down. She hears Rue groan. “Fez and I are taking care of it! It’s Fez’s welcome back party, and the party was my idea.” Rue tries to argue.

“It’s Fez’s welcome back party indeed, which is exactly why he shouldn’t have to be doing that shit, Rue.” Lexi calmly says. “Nah, Lex, I’ll take care of it. If you wanna drink, go ahead. Just didn’t want Rue to peer pressure you into nothin’.” Fez now bops in.

Lexi shrugs. “Fine. I’m drinking tonight, but I’m not getting drunk! I’m the one in charge, it’s my goddamn house, whatever the two of you are saying.”

The doorbell, again.

Rue and Lexi walk over towards the door, leaving Fez standing in the living room. “Elliott!” Rue yells, flying around the neck of the boy with the apple logo tattooed onto his cheek.

After Elliott, more people follow. Groups of people she’s never seen before enter her house, the music getting louder every minute it seems.

Lexi ends up sitting down on the couch, as usual, when all of her friends seem to be preoccupied with other people. Fez is on the other couch, talking to Kat. Lexi feels a hint of jealousy and turns her face toward the crowd of people dancing in her living room.

She hears Kat laugh and gets back up from the couch, finding her way to the liquor. She's had some drinks tonight, but she didn't really feel it yet.

She fills half a cup with vodka, then adds some cranberry juice. She takes a sip and is reminded that she needs more juice. However, she needs to get rid of her mind telling her everything sucks at the moment real fast, so she just drinks.

She heads back to the couch with the red cup in her hands, and sits on the couch as far away from the pair currently giving her silly thoughts as possible. She has no right to feel this way about Fez and Kat just talking.

Yet again, she hears Kat laugh.

She didn’t really like Kat. Ethan told her about their breakup and that really made her change her feelings about the girl she’d beforehand seen as one of her friends.

The third time she hears Kat’s loud laugh over the music, Lexi stands up and moves towards her room, where she downs her drink and then lies in her bed for a couple of minutes. God, she needed to get a grip.

She stood up again, looked at herself in the mirror and gave herself a small pep talk inside of her head. She took the cup from where she put it down, and back to the liquor she went. This time being a little more considerate with the measurements.

When she’s back to the couch, she can’t ignore the fact that both couches are now empty. No sign of the guy whom the entire party was about, no sign of the girl with the black latex corset.

Seeing Kat talking to some other guy in her living room, with no sign of Fez being anywhere near her, made her feel slightly better.

She took out her phone to act like she had a life, then saw she’d missed a message from Fez a couple minutes ago. She downed her drink before opening it.

Fez: yo where u at

“You downed that drink way too quickly for it to be a vodka cranberry,” She hears a familiar voice before she can answer the message.

Looking up, it’s Fez. He sits down next to her. “I was just going to reply to your message,” She says.

“Yeah?” He looks at her phone. “You enjoying the party?” He asks, giving her a grin.

“Yeah,” Lexi lies.

“Ma, I saw you sitting down and walking away from this couch like three times. Lookin’ like you wanna die,” Fez laughs. When Lexi looks at him, she swears she catches a hint of concern in his eyes.

"Oh, I'm good. How are you enjoying the party? It's supposed to be about you, after all." Lexi replies.

Fez shakes his head. "Nah, we don't really gotta celebrate me escaping a prison sentence while Ash still in there. But if you really wanna know, a girl just went on a whole rant about her ex to me, I think her name was Kat. Tried to get rid of her, the girl just thought everything I said was so funny."

Hearing that makes Lexi feel a bit better.

"Well, you are very funny, Fez." Lexi says.

He chuckles at the statement. "Not when I tell her I think what she did to him's fucked, I'm not. That shit was not funny, but when I said it, she was half rollin' on the fuckin' floor here. Only got her to stop laughing when I said I was going lookin' for you."

"You went looking for me?" Lexi feels the alcohol kick in.

"Yeah, 'course. You the coolest person in here and you looked like death, was kinda concerned actually," He confirms her earlier intuition. He was concerned.

Her heart skips a beat.

She brings her cup up to her mouth, only to realize the cup was already empty.

"Let me pour you a drink." Fezco reaches his hand out to grab her cup, and she gives it. Their fingers briefly brush against each others'.

"Vodka cranberry, right?" Fezco looks at her as he gets up from the couch.

Lexi nods.

When he comes back, she eagerly grabs the cup and takes a sip.

"Fez, I usually need the vodka to at least soften the taste of the cranberry a bit. Cranberry's actually really gross by itself." Lexi pulls off a face showing her disgust.

Fezco's laughing again. "There's vodka in there, ma. Enough vodka for you, for now," He states.

Lexi throws the drink down at once. "I can handle it," She says.

“I know you can, Lexi. With how fuckin’ fearless you are, I’m pretty sure you can take on the world,” He sends her a soft smile.

Lexi silently wishes he was right. She wishes she could go after what she really wanted, something that was sitting right by her side at this very moment. The distance between them suddenly felt so enormous she couldn’t bear it.

She nonchalantly shifted closer to him on the couch and whispered, “I’m not so fuckin’ fearless, Fez.” She looked down at her hands. “I’ve never really had the courage to do anything.”

She thought about some of the moments in her life she wanted to be fearless, but wasn’t. When Rue started doing drugs, for example. Lexi had been too much of a coward to stop her friend. Lexi had been too much of a coward to stop herself from stepping into the car while her dad was heavily intoxicated behind the wheel.

“I don’t believe that for a second,” Fez says, “You sitting here with a drug dealer fresh outta prison, you stuck wit me after seeing what I did to Nate, you put up with Rue throughout her worst days, you put on that play.” He recollects.

“Hmm,” She murmurs, “I like sitting here with you. I don’t need courage for that, you give me courage.” She says, knowing it’s both a lie and a truth. She had actually needed the courage to shift closer to him like she just did in the couch, but that wasn’t her own courage, that was liquid courage. And then there was him, definitely giving her more courage. He could make her feel fearless even if she wasn’t.

“Well then Lexi, if you believe that’s the case, I’ll keep sitting here. Till you believe I’ve given you enough courage to take on the world. You fuckin’ fearless, but now you just gotta believe in it yourself,” He says.

Lexi sniffs. She doesn’t really know what to say. She wants to thank him, but she can’t find the right words.

When her eyes move over the crowd again, she's stuck staring at one pair in particular. When Fez notices, he follows her gaze.

"You think they a good idea?" Fez asks her, referring to the two girls they're staring at.

"Well, Rue's in a bit of a better place now. I don't know about Jules though. She cheated last time they were together," Lexi gives her opinion.

"Shit, I didn't even know that," Fez responds. "They might be no good for each other," He continues.

Lexi nods. "I think Rue really loves her, though. So I hope it works out for the both of them."

"Hope so too," Fez mumbles beside her.

At some point, Lexi wakes up in her own bed again. The music is gone, replaced by the pounding of a headache instead.

She gets up to grab an Advil, taking her phone from the nightstand and scrolling through her messages.

Fez: ayo will be there later today to help clean, sleep well

She looked at the current time. Nine in the morning. Too early. She needed to go back to sleep.

Mom: back on Sunday night, hope you're still doing well by yourself sweetie

Of course she was. Honestly, she'd been more or less by herself for a while before. Now, at least she had Fez, and Rue again. They are there for her when she needs them, like when she has to clean the house later that day.

They have fun while cleaning, and Rue talks about the possibility of her and Jules getting back together. They discuss Faye, and then Ashtray. Ashtray, whose trial starts that next Monday.

Fez asks Rue and Lexi to be there, and Lexi wants to say that she’ll be there, but Rue reminds her that they have an exam. It is an important exam, as it will matter for their college admissions.

Fez tells them it’s no big deal, but Lexi knows that it really is. When Lexi tells him that she’ll skip out on the exam by calling in sick on the phone that evening, Fez is short with her. He tells her to go to the exam, that he doesn’t want to see her.

Lexi is hurt by his response.

They end the call shortly after their unresolved argument, and they don’t call or text during the day following.

Lexi has to study, anyways. Although it’s hard for her to get Fezco off her mind.

That Monday, a couple of hours before her exam and right before the start of Ashtray’s trial, Lexi does send him a text.

Lexi: good luck, hoping for the best

Lexi: and sorry about what i said during our last call, i shouldn’t have been pushing to go if you didn’t want me there

She studies for a bit more for her exam, and eventually gets up to leave for school. While she’s on her bike, she feels her phone buzz in her pocket.

Afraid she might cause an accident, she swings herself off her bike and takes her phone out on the sidewalk. It’s Fez.

“Hi,” She says, after accepting the call.

“Lexi,” She hears Fez on the other side of the phone call.

It’s silent for a second.

“I’m sorry about, ya know, our last call. Saturday night.” He then starts.

“I just, I don’t want you to throw away your smartness for me, or Ash. You so smart, and to just skip out on an exam like that? Ain’t like you.” He elaborates.

Lexi tries to understand. “But Ash’ trial is important to me, more important than some stupid exam.” She says.

“Hmm.” Fez doesn’t really reply.

“How’s the first trial day going so far?” She hopes she doesn’t hit a nerve with that question.

“Yah, it’s all good, it seems. I’m jus’ scared, what if they keep Ash, ya know? I shoulda been responsible, no matter what. If he’s convicted of anything, that’s on me. I shoulda just talked and said it was all me,” Fez voice trembles when saying that last sentence.

The sound of Fez being so vulnerable with her stabs her right in the chest.

“No, Fez, you have a great lawyer. Do you think your grandma would have ensured you that specific guy if she didn’t want you to do whatever he’d say is the best option? He said that both of you go with Faye’s version of events,” Lexi tries to comfort him.

 Fez listens, inhales, exhales.

“I really needed to hear that from you, thanks,” He eventually speaks.

Whenever Fez says something like that, it makes Lexi’s heart skip a beat.

“Well, it’s the truth. So, uh-- anytime.” Lexi feels herself getting a bit self-conscious, and she stumbles over her words.

“Shit, I didn’t call to interrupt your studying or nothing, right?” Fez now suddenly speaks up in worry.

“No, no, of course not. I was on my way to school, so, I should probably get back on my bike to make it in time for my exam.” She calms him down.

“Yeah, get back on that bike, and ace that exam for me,” Fez says, “Good luck, I know you can do it,” He sounds better than he did right when picking up the phone, less worried, happier.

There’s butterflies flying around in Lexi’s stomach, and she knows her face is red as a lobster right now.

“We’ll talk again later, bye Fez,” She says before getting back up on her bike and driving off to school.  

She doesn’t ace the exam. Too many things are on her mind. She wonders how much cash is in her room. She already emptied her savings account a couple weeks back, when Laurie told her she needed $11,000 from her to pay back her dad’s debt.

She needs to have the money by next Tuesday.

Back in her room, she goes through her drawers, purses, every place she’s potentially stashed some cash. When she puts it all together with the money she took for her savings, which was meant to go to her college tuition and things like that, it’s only $7849,45.

It’s still more than she expected to have.

But she’s still over $3000 dollars short. How she’s going to get her hands on that kind of money in just a week’s time, she doesn’t know.

Thinking about the potential scenarios she could be met with when she doesn’t turn up with the right amount of money gets her head spinning. All of a sudden her breathing is erratic, and tears are filling out her eyes.

When her phone buzzes, and she sees Fez’s name on her screen, she does not pick up.

Chapter Text

Lexi is sat on the counter of Fezco's store. The shop has been empty mostly, with the exception of a few people buying gas. Fez had asked her to take on this shift, as he'd visit Ash in the youth detention center for the first time.

He had wanted to go by himself, which Lexi fully understood.

Although he'd been there in court at all of his trial dates, the two were still unable to really talk. So today was important for Fez and Ash, as the two had not been together in so long.

Lexi was glad she could work here, although she only made a couple of dollars an hour, below minimum wage. But every penny helped her right now, she thought to herself.

Her shift was almost over, and Fez would be there to take over.

While swiping through her Twitter page, she suddenly got a call coming in on her phone. She didn't recognize the phone number, but picked up regardless. For a moment she thought that it maybe had to do with the whole Laurie situation, but the voice on the other side of the phone calmed her down.

"Lexi, this Leslie," She heard the mother of Rue on the phone. Lexi quickly wondered what it could be, and then in an instant, she was worried again.

"I'm just looking for Rue, she hasn't been home tonight, God—I fell asleep waiting on her. Ever since she's been sober she always tells me if she's staying the night somewhere else," Leslie tries to speak as if she's keeping it together, but she's really not.

Lexi doesn't really know what to say. "Oh God, uh—Did Rue tell you where she went last night? I can try calling around, I don't know--" She started out, but Leslie interrupted her.

"No! I have no idea where she went, she went to school—God, did she even go to school? I didn't see her after she left then, and she texted she'd have dinner at a friend's, but then never texted again, she isn't picking up her phone either," Leslie almost shouts into the phone.

It does sound worrisome. Why would Rue not just text her mom she was sleeping over at the friend?

"Rue was at school yesterday, I've seen her. Have you tried Elliott? I know they're pretty close," Lexi suggests.

"I don't have his phone number, could you reach him? Or give me his phone number if you're busy," Leslie replied.

"Oh, it's fine! I'll call him, and if she's not there I'll reach out to some other people. Can you let me know if you've found her? I'll call as soon as I know where she is." Lexi says.

"Alright then, I'll go drive around the neighborhood with Gia. Thank you for the help, Lexi." Rue's mom thanks her before hanging up the phone.

Lexi immediately calls Elliott, whose phone number she's obtained somewhere over the past summer.

When she gets to the point and asks him if Rue's around, he seems surprised. "No, Rue's not here. She was here yesterday though, we hung out for a bit before she went home," Elliott explained.

"Rue didn't go home. At least, not according to her mom." Lexi says. Elliott did not calm her nerves saying that. Why'd she tell him she went home if she wasn't planning on going home? What stopped her from going home if she was in fact planning on going home?

"Shit, like, not at all? She didn't get home last night at all? No sign of her?" He asks abruptly.

Lexi hears someone enter the store, and looks up to see Fezco. She gestures towards the phone.

"Um, no, she didn't. Her mom called me asking if I had any idea of her whereabouts." Lexi says.

Fez sends her a questioning look that Lexi doesn't answer.

"You called Jules?" Elliott then asks.

She hadn't really thought of it, but yeah, maybe Jules was a good idea. It seemed as if Rue and Jules had somehow been reconnecting at the party last week, and it was likely Rue would kind of try to keep that quiet given everyone's opinion on the pairing. Not a lot of people in town still shipped them.

"Oh God, no, I didn't think of that. But that sounds like a good idea though, I can call her or I can go by her place in a second, see for myself." Lexi says.

Fez was now looking at Lexi intently, and she knew it was making her blush.

"Yeah, it seems they are kind of back together, or whatever is going on between the two of them. They've been spending time together this last week is what I know. Let me know if you need help looking for Rue, if she's not at Jules' place then I'll be searching with you," Elliott shuts down their conversation.

When Lexi puts her phone down, Fez still has that same questioning look on his face. Lexi finds it cute, and it makes her stomach twist and twirl.

"Rue's mom is looking for her, she didn't come home last night." She quickly explains the situation.

His questioning look makes room for concern.

"But I'm gonna call Jules, see if she's there. Elliott mentioned that apparently, those two have been spending some time together just this last week," Lexi elaborates.

His concerned face now shifted again. "It's always something with that girl, huh."

Lexi was scrolling through her phone's contacts list again, in search of Jules' number. She quickly gathered the courage to make yet another phone call and waited for Jules to pick up.

However, she didn't. The phone eventually went to voicemail, and Lexi improvised. "Hi, this is Lexi. I was wondering if Rue's with you, since she hasn't been home and her mom's kind of concerned. Could you call me back?"

She heard Fez grab his keys from the counter, and when she put her phone back in her pocket he gestured outside. "Let's go," He said.

"What about the store?" Lexi asked hesitantly.

"I'll just close it for a bit, no one's coming by here anyways," Fezco stated.

And so, they walked out of the store and got into the Caddy. "You know where to go?" Lexi asked him as they started driving.

"Yeah, had to bring Rue there some time," Fezco shook his head, as if to shake off some bad memories.

They got to Jules' house in no time, and Lexi got out to ring the doorbell while Fez waited behind the wheel.

An old man opened the door, and Lexi was slightly taken aback. For a second, she didn't know what to say. "Hi, is Jules home? I'm a friend," She then said.

The man raised his eyebrows, then walked back into the hallway. "Jules!" He yelled out, "Friend of yours!"

"What? What are you talking about?" Lexi heard Jules running down the stairs. The girl stood in the hallway, staring at Lexi in surprise.

"Who is it?" She heard another person walking down the stairs ask. Lexi recognized the voice; Rue was indeed here with Jules.

"Uh, Rue, your mom was looking for you. She seemed really worried." Lexi spoke. The older man, she presumed to be Jules' father, walked into the living room, out of their sight.

"Oh, I must have forgotten to text her," Rue calmly states.

"Yeah," Lexi responded. She'd kind of hoped Rue would have thought of this as more important, something she didn't just wave away by saying she simply forgot. Not coming home at night while her mom's worried sick shouldn't be so okay with her.

"I think you should call her," Lexi says. Lexi turned around to head back to the car, but then heard Rue behind her. "Wait!" She yelled.

Lexi turned around to look at her. "Are you on a date?" Rue asked, eyeing the car and its passenger.

"What?" Lexi huffed, "No! No, I was just working at the gas station when your mom called to ask if I knew where you were. Fezco just got back from visiting Ash and offered a ride," She explained.

Then she turned around again, walking off to the car. She hoped Fez had not been able to hear any of that.

She hopped into the passenger seat, and saw Jules close the door behind her. "Somehow, that girl always ends up landing on her own two feet again. Girl's got nine lives or something," Fezco mumbles.

"Yeah," Lexi couldn't really say much about it. She was happy her friend was safe and sound, she just wished that Rue could value her own safety more, not be so reckless for once.

Fezco began driving again. "Yo, you hungry?" He asked.

Lexi hadn't eaten yet today. She'd been in a bit of hurry that morning after sleeping past her alarm, then rushed to the gas station to open up on time.

"Yeah, kinda." She admitted. "Me too," Fez mumbles. "I'm craving some pancakes, so IHOP it is." He then states.

"I'm good with that," Lexi chuckled. He smiled back at her.

On the way to the restaurant, Lexi calls Leslie to let her know Rue is okay. She also texts Elliott with the news.

When they finally get to the restaurant, they get into one of the booths and Lexi scans the entire menu.

She only then realizes that she had been planning on not spending any money until she had a new deal with Laurie. She needed as much money as possible for their meeting in just a couple of days.

So even these pancakes could get her killed.

Or, maybe not killed. Trafficked, more likely. She didn't really like the idea of either of those things.

But she was here right now, and there was nothing she could do about it.

She would never ask anyone to pay for her, especially not a guy. Her feminist compass required her to be an independent woman. Even if she maybe would be better off not thinking of that compass at this very moment.

The cheapest pancakes were just $5. She'd find a way to make that back later today.

"What's it you want? I think I'm going with blueberry pancakes," Lexi heard Fez speak from behind the menu card that was in front of her face.

"Uh, just the original buttermilk ones. I'm basic." Lexi replies, and she puts the menu down on the table.

The waitress eventually pops by their table and they order. It doesn't take long for their food to arrive.

"So, how was it seeing Ash this morning?" Lexi finally questioned Fez.

He looks up at her from his plate. "Was definitely good. Missed him a lot. 'M just hoping he gets to go free this next week, hope he can fool the jury into thinkin' he a sweet kid n' all."

Lexi nods. "I'm sure he can. You know, beneath that tough exterior, he actually is a sweet kid. I know I don't know him like you do, but he was really nice to me and Rue whenever we visited him." Lexi assures him.

"You gonna be at the trial next Monday, right?" Fezco asks her.

She nods again. "Yeah." Her voice is soft now. Monday, Fezco will stand as a witness in Ashtray's trial.

"Are you nervous about it?" She asks it carefully, as if she's afraid to go into it.

Fez sighs. "I mean.. Kind of. Yeah. If I say something wrong.. His sentence 's gonna be on me."

"But you've trained for this, right? Like, your lawyer has talked to you about what you should and should not say. What questions you can expect from the prosecutors and all that," Lexi reminds him.

"Yeah," Fez drawls. "I know. Is irrational, a bit. But still."

A short silence follows.

"I wanna see Faye next week, we should be visiting her." Fez says.

"I saw her on Tuesday, she was doing well," Lexi says. "But we can definitely go by hers again next week, she'd really like that."

The waitress comes by again, and puts a bill down on the table.

Lexi's hand goes into her purse, finding her wallet. But before she can even get it out, Fez has handed the waitress a twenty dollar bill.

"This is it, keep the change." He says.

Her eyes make contact with Fez' eyes with her hands still in her purse. When the waitress walks off, Fez laughs. "What, you thought I was going to let you pay, ma? My grandmother didn't raise me like that."

Lexi doesn't really know what to say. "Well, I don't need anyone to pay for me. I'm an independent woman, Fez," Lexi tries to pull off a laugh.

"But I do appreciate it." She says when she feels the weight of her words settle in, painting her as an ungrateful brat.

"Good thing. Let's go," He says, getting himself out of the booth.

They walk back to the car, and once they're in, Fez shoots Lexi a questioning look. "Do I need to drop you off at home? Or you wanna hang at the store for a bit more?" He then asks.

Lexi is really tempted to go with the latter, but then reminds herself that she does really need to find money, or a way to make more money.

"Sorry, I have to do this assignment for school." She sighs.

"'Course, I understand. S' all important stuff, your final year in high school." Fezco says.

Lexi shakes her head. "I honestly could care less. No idea what I want to do after this."

Fezco looks over from the road, to Lexi. "You'll figure it out," He says.

They shortly interlock eyes and Lexi feels herself blush again, so she quickly averts her eyes towards the ground.

They start walking back to the car, and before she knows it, Fez has dropped her off back at her home. He waits till she gets into her house and closes the door behind her.

"So, how's your convict friend doing?" She hears her mom ask from the living room.

Lexi walks into the room, her view falling upon the empty wine bottle by the couch her mom is lying on. "He's not a convict, mom."

Her mom tries to sit upright, but fails to do so. "You get what I mean. How's he doing?" She repeats her question.

"He's alright, I guess. Just nervous for his brother's trial." Lexi sighs.

"Well, if his brother's innocent, the justice system will do its job." Her mom says.

Lexi sighs once more, then walks off to her room.

Money.

That's the mission. She needs money.

Going through her drawers, she picks out all the jewelry that may be of value of which she is sure that she'll probably never wear it.

She places all of it into a purse and decides to see if she can get some money for it at the pawn shop.

Most of her jewelry is old, gifts of family members whose faces she has forgotten, last seen around here when she was just a tiny girl twirling in dresses and playing with dolls.

Back when days were easier.

She doesn't think too much on the pieces she stashes into the purse, except for a blue gold necklace her dad gifted her before he left.

She puts it right into the bag, as she thinks of the fact that he's the one who put her into this situation in the first place. She does not need another reminder of him.

As she gets out of her room, she hears her mom. "Going to see that boy again?"

Lexi fidgets with the sling of her purse. "No, just, working at the store for a bit," She replies, and before she can catch her mom saying anything back Lexi is out of the house.

She takes her bike and drives off towards the outskirts of the town, where she knows the only pawn shop in her near vicinity to be located.

She's never been to a pawn shop before, but the process is easier than she would have thought.

It turns out her dad did at least leave her one valuable thing, and that is the blue, gold necklace. Worth over $400, she got $325 for it.

In total, her jewelry gets her a grand total of $438, and it is more than she had honestly expected.

Yet still not enough.

On Monday morning, Lexi is seated in a courtroom. She is staring at Fezco sitting in the seat right next to the judge, sending him nods of support.

Fezco is dressed in a suit, with a tie and all, looking neat.

He repeats some statement, swears he will speak the solemn truth and only that. The defense starts out by asking him questions about Ashtray's youth, how he grew up, grew into life without a good, stable mother or father figure.

How scared Ashtray was, how the little boy had been terrified of the game he was in.

It was all bullshit, really. But it painted a nice picture. Nice enough for the jury to believe in, they all hoped.

When the prosecution came up to ask questions, Fezco got a little bit more nervous.

But it seemed they had very little questions to ask. And that's when it really showed; their murder case was weak at best.

It sparked some hope within Lexi, and it must have too for Fez, because he seemed more cheerful after his witness testimony had ended.

"That went well!" Lexi congratulated Fez as he came back to her. The judge had just stated a 20 minute break would be in order before moving on with the trial. Some kind of behavioral psychologist would take the stand.

"Ash is gonna be home in a week, tops." Rue said enthusiastically.

"Nah, Rue. Ash not gonna be home again. He gonna go live with some foster family," Fezco responded, less enthusiastic.

"Hmm," Rue sounded, "At least you can go visit him, you can probably snag him out of there too. You're Fezco."

"We not finna do that, Rue." Fez now sounded agitated. "Well, I guess anything is better than him being in prison, right?" Lexi now jumped in to calm everything down.

"Right," Fez and Rue simultaneously responded.

The rest of the trial day dragged on slow. The defense brought forward numerous experts, to explain certain things that happened and why they would happen the way that they did. It made their story make sense. It discredited the story of the prosecution.

At the end of the day, Fez dropped Rue and Lexi off at their homes again.

As soon as she got home, Lexi's counting the total amount of money she had gathered for her meeting with Laurie tomorrow.

She needs $11k, going through all of her bills now, it seems she has $8312,45.

By far not enough.

Why had she started worrying about that money so goddamn late? It was atypical of her, procrastinating. She was always strict with deadlines, starting assignment as soon as she got them.

But something had shifted inside Lexi over the past few months. She wasn't exactly the same girl anymore. She got drunk, skipped school, gained herself a debt.

What would Laurie say? What would she do?

Would she really sell her off just like that, to some old perverts? No, not Lexi. No one would even want to buy her, she thought to herself.

Or would they?

Maybe she just needed a solid plan. Like a 5-year-plan, but then a 2-week-plan, instead. She'd figure out a way to get the money in 2 weeks. And she'd offer to pay interest.

She could've figured out a better way than working at Fezco's gas station long before now. But sadly, now was all she had left to work with.

She'd find a job.

Scouring the internet for something, she found a platform for small waitressing jobs. Anywhere they needed a person, she could come. She decided she needed to take on as many small gigs as possible in these next two weeks.

Waitressing was not her ideal kind of work, but it paid. And she needed no long term contract for it.

She'd tell Laurie she knew for certain that she would have the money in 2 weeks time. Then it was up to Laurie to believe her or not.

She wasn't too sure whether it would work or not.

She wasn't even sure what she'd make waitressing every day for 2 weeks straight. Surely it wasn't that much.

But she had to show up to Laurie tomorrow, right? Her credibility would greatly decrease if she didn't show for her deadline.

She wouldn't even get a chance to explain her side of the story then. Laurie would not trust her.

As she sat down with her back against the wall on the floor, her phone buzzed. It was Fezco.

She needed to hear his voice right now.

To get her mind off this entire situation.

She was tired, though.

"Hi," She softly spoke into the phone as she picked up.

"Lexi," He drawled, "How you doin'?"

She really liked the way her name rolled off his tongue.

"I'm good, a bit tired.. But all is well." She said. It was a bit of a lie, yes. But she'd never intended on telling Fez, or anyone for that matter, about the Laurie situation.

Fez didn't need that. He had enough to worry about. And Rue wouldn't really be able to help her anyway. Who else could she possibly go to? Her mom?

No, not her mom. She didn't want to remind her mother of her dad. It would only make her worse. And she'd actually been doing a bit better as of late.

"Good," Fez replied. "Excited for another day of school?" She heard him ask.

"Not so much, no." Lexi mumbled. She'd gotten a bit lost in her thoughts, she realized.

"So how are you doing?" Lexi tried to shake herself out of it by being the one asking the questions.

"Hm, today was a good trial day I think, but taking the stand was rough. Tomorrow we got another day filled. I'mma not be there for Ash the entire trial day, got some other things I need to do. But Ash also kinda needs me there, I know. So I'm kinda nervous for tomorrow, actually." He answers.

Yeah, tomorrow doesn't seem like a good day to Lexi. Whatever happened, it was out of her hands now. If Laurie wanted her dead, she'd die tomorrow.

"Same," Lexi heard herself mutter when Fezco said he was nervous about tomorrow.

What did she just say?

She repeated his words in her head, then hers.

"You nervous 'bout what?" Fez was quick to ask. She didn't know how to respond to that.

"Oh.. I don't know, just, nervous for Ash, and for you. Sorry, I guess saying 'same' about people experiencing a bad situation or something has become a habit for me or something." She then tries to explain her strange remark.

"No worries, that's alright. I gotchu," He says. His voice is warm, radiating kindness.

Lexi bites her lip.

"I'm seein' Faye tomorrow, you know," Fez then says.

"Oh," Is all Lexi can really say about it, "Good."

"Yeah, she comin' to the witness stand for Ash like, this Wednesday I think it is. I owe her," He elaborates.

"Hmhm," Lexi murmurs. "That's nice," She speaks.

"Wassup, ma? You soundin' a bit out of it or something," She hears Fez say.

Lexi stands up from the floor and falls onto her bed. "Sorry.. Yeah.. 'M just, a bit tired. I guess," She yawns, trying not to do so audibly.

She gets comfy underneath the sheets, placing her phone next to her pillow and raising the volume.

"You good, you good. Get some sleep Lex, I'll call you tomorrow night, okay?" Fez says.

Lexi's eyes are already closed, and she doesn't reply.

Fezco waits up a bit, before he understands she's fallen asleep. Through the phone he can be heard before ending the call, "Goodnight, Lexi."

Chapter Text

Two thousand six hundred and eighty-seven dollars and fifty-five cents. That is how much Lexi is short when on her way to Laurie after her last class that Tuesday.

Her anxiety is shooting through the roof. She feels the beat of her heart in her throat, she feels a shakiness that stretches from her head to her toes. She feels nauseous, and she is so cold, yet she is sweating.

She takes a few breaths when she stands in front of the door. She counts to ten, making herself awfully aware of where she is and what she's about to do.

When she reaches ten, the hand she's holding up in front of the door does not move. She doesn't knock. She needs another ten.

In her head, the counting starts once more.

One, two, three... The door flings open, and a heavy hand pulls her through the entrance, then slams the door behind her.

"What do you think you're doing?"

It's the bald man she's seen before. She doesn't really remember his name, just the scary looks he sent her. He gave her a pat-down last time, looking for a wire.

The man had wanted her to undress, even. But when she said she was just looking for Gus Howard, Laurie understood the situation and told the man to stop.

"You think you can spy on us like that? I think the fuck not," He yelled in her face.

Lexi didn't really know what to say. She looked around for Laurie but didn't see her in the room.

"You wearin' a wire or what?" All of a sudden his fist was in her hair, his fingers on her scalp right before he pushed her, and her jaw connected with the wall.

A wave of pain rushed over her, but she tried to not show it. "I'm... – I'm just here with the money." She spat.

One of his hands was still pushing her head against the wall, she felt the other slip under the hem of her shirt and pull it up. She then felt him fumble with the button of her pants, before he pulled them down to show her bare legs. He finally lets go of her.

God, she'd never felt herself put on display like that. She felt like she could cry right there.

She saw Laurie walk in and quickly reached down to pull her pants back up.

"Brucy, you don't have to do it like that. I trust Alexis to make smart decisions here." Laurie speaks.

Hearing her speak makes her stomach twist and turn and her hands clammy, but not in the way that Fezco does it.

The big man takes a step back and Laurie gestures toward Lexi to take a seat at the small table in the kitchen. Laurie herself sits down on the chair on the opposing side.

Before sitting down, Lexi readjusts her shirt. "I'm sorry about all that. We're just being careful." Laurie says, and Lexi is reminded why everything she says scares her so much. It's the way she speaks.

"I don't have the money." Lexi blurts out. She could hit herself right there. That was not how she planned to say it.

Laurie raises her eyebrows.

"I mean, not all of it. I have most of it, and I have a plan. I can get you the remaining part of the money in two weeks, tops. With interest. I have a job, I promise you I will have the money," She then elaborates. She speaks so fast, she doesn't even know if the lady sitting in front of her caught all of it. Most of it was a lie, anyway.

"Okay," She simply says.

What does that mean? Is that good? Is that bad? Is it a sign for the scary man to grab and kill her? Or to sell her?

"How much is it you have right know?" Laurie questioned her.

Why did she just... Not seem mad?

"I have like eight thousand five hundred right now, I can make the rest in the next two weeks." She lied again.

"You still need two and a half thousand, Alexis. That's quite a lot for two weeks," Laurie now seemed to be more hesitant, although her speech remained monotonous as always.

"I'll give you a month if you fix up your friend's debt, as well. Ruby paid it all off the first time she owed me, I still don't know how." Laurie then made her an offer. Ruby... As in Rue?

"But then last summer she came back around some time to get a fix, and she promised to pay me back. She hasn't done so yet and I'm beginning to get a bit worried she might not do so at all." The woman continued.

Rue came back last summer to get a fix? When was that? It must have been when Lexi was with Maddy or something, because she never noticed her friend being back on drugs. God, she was such a bad friend. Lexi bit her lip to stop the tears from forming.

"I'd have her kidnapped and sold off to make my money back, but it's only nine hundred bucks and I think you can take care of it just fine," Laurie said, as nonchalant as always.

Of course it was Lexi who had to take care of it. She couldn't possibly say no when this woman had just said the only other option for her friend would have to involve human trafficking.

She couldn't possibly say no at all, because she knew that she wouldn't make more than $2.5k in the next two weeks. If she'd have more than $3.4k in a month's time was another question, but at least she'd have more time.

"Give me what you have right now, I want to count it," Lexi is then ordered by Laurie.

She does as she is asked, and waits in silence as Laurie goes through the bills she puts down. It takes a bit of time, and Lexi gets more nervous as less and less bills remain on the stack. When Laurie counts the coins, Lexi's right leg is shaking.

"Eight thousand three hundred and twelve dollars and forty-five cents. That means next month you'll be bringing me three thousand five hundred eighty-seven dollars and fifty-five cents." The lady states when she's done counting.

Lexi nods and tries to lock the number in her thoughts until she can write it down once she's outside. That's when she feels she can finally breathe again. Before the scary man can pull her back inside the house, she jumps onto her bike.

It was the second time this week Lexi was sitting in a courtroom. Also the second time this week Lexi skipped school. Two things Lexi didn't do too often. Only in special circumstances would she skip school twice a week.

She was a bit tired, after yesterday's events. Coming home from Laurie, she'd been scared seeing her bruised face in the mirror. The two bruises had formed on one side of her face, one covered her cheek, the other was right by her jawbone, where her skin had first made contact with the wall in Laurie's house.

But she couldn't miss being here right now. Even if it meant enduring the concerned gaze of Fez that crept up on her as soon as he saw the bruises. She knew he wanted to ask, but Lexi had been a bit late to the courthouse and they needed to hurry up to see the next testimony. Rue was already waiting inside.

It was now Faye's turn to take the stand and talk about what happened the day of her play, the day of the raid.

She got through the questioning by the defense with ease, as everything she needed to say there had already been discussed in great detail. Faye portrayed Ashtray exactly the way the jury had to see him; a sweet kid with a heavy backstory. A kid with a conscience, too.

When it was time for the prosecution to question her, she held up that same image. "So, you say they took you in, took care of you, you told them why they had to do all that?" The prosecutor asked her.

"Well, yeah, I did." Faye said.

A smug smile crept onto the face of the prosecutor.

"So, they knew you killed somebody, and they helped you evade legal consequences." The man stated.

Faye shook her head at the statement. "No, we never talked about that! I didn't even know the man-- whom I defended myself against, was dead. I needed to stay with them because I was scared of my boyfriend, whom I was staying with up until that point," She spun the story around.

It was almost scary how easy it was for her to lie.

There was a short silence, the prosecutor looking behind him, over at his assisting prosecutor.

"So, your boyfriend, that was Custer Garcia?" He then asks.

"He never mentioned his last name, I just knew him as Custer," Faye answers.

"And how exactly did he scare you?" The prosecutor went on about him.

Faye makes sure there's a moment of silence during which she looks down at her hands. It was a great act.

"Sometimes he made me have sex with his friend, whom he called Mouse. He would beat me if I didn't do it, he told me it was to pay him off for the drugs I took. But after Mouse died--" She stopped talking. She swallowed, looked up and down again. She bit her lip.

"He just—He just became super paranoid. He'd get angry about small things, he often threatened to kill me if I asked him for drugs again. He'd hit me," She continued.

Faye should be winning an Oscar for her performance here, Lexi knew.

"But there's no medical info on you, say, breaking bones in the past couple of years. Correct?" The prosecutor attempts to discredit her story.

"Correct," Faye affirms, "But Custer would not let me." She bites back. Then, she moves her head and throws her hair to the side. "Right before I moved in with Fezco and Ash, he beat me up. It was bad, um-- he'd pushed my head into a wall. Fezco really wanted me to go to a doctor, but I refused. He ended up putting the stitches into my head himself, with a little help from his brother."

Lexi doesn't really know to what extent that story is true. There are actual stitches in the back of her head it seems, and it definitely does seem to be done by an amateur. It looks gross, and she can tell the image upsets the jury members. In a good way.

The prosecutor doesn't look too happy with the way things are going.

"So, Fezco O'Neill and his brother Ashtray took care of you. Did you know anything about their income stream? How they had the money to suddenly feed another mouth?" He obviously felt the need to go in a different direction. He couldn't really save the image of Custer anymore.

"Yeah, they operated a gas station, with a little store. I was there occasionally myself," Faye replies, "And I don't think I ever ate that much. Like, I didn't need three meals everyday. I was happy when Fezco shared his sandwich with me."

"So, while living there, you only occasionally got part of a sandwich? Would you say you were starving, while living there?" The prosecutor asks.

Faye shakes her head. "No, I just, I didn't need that much food. I was going through withdrawal, I barely had an appetite. They offered me enough, I didn't take it."

The examination goes on for another hour, and it is entertaining, almost laughable, how Faye just ruins the case of the state. Fezco put a crack in it, Faye just completely shattered it.

When Faye is done, she exchanges a moment with the three of them sitting on the bench. She waves, a small smile visible on her face. Fez returns her a grateful look.

During the break following her testimony, they get out of the courtroom for a bit.

"Lex, what the hell happened to your face?" Rue's the first to ask. Subconsciously, Lexi brings a hand up to her jaw. It's still kind of painful to the touch, and she flinches.

"Um, just, me being stupid. You know how I get," Lexi tries to laugh it off, quickly finding a way out, "Sorry, I need to go, I've skipped school twice this week and can't afford to lag behind on any more work. Rue, are you staying down here?"

Rue and Fez shoot each other a glance, and Lexi feels uncomfortable lying to them, but she has to, she tells herself. "Nah, Rue is going witchu," Fez answers. Rue shoots Fez another glance, then shakes her head.

"No, I meant to stay here for a bit. I really want to see the expert testimony from the guy that's up next. He's specialized in daddy issues or something," Rue says. Fez sighs.

"Oh okay, cool, um—I'll see you guys." Lexi turns around and walks out of the courthouse, heading for her bike.

To be fair, Lexi was glad Rue was staying at the courthouse with Fez for some longer. She could go straight to where she needed to go.

Lexi told Rue and Fez that she has school things to do, but in reality, she has to work her first shift waitressing at this restaurant. She'd had an interview the evening before, with the platform that organizes these things.

The main idea behind it is that restaurants can offer last-minute waitressing shifts when they need people, and anyone accepted by the interviewer may apply for these shifts. Thus, any shift could be at a different restaurant, and she could stop taking on shifts anytime. So when Lexi has her money, she can stop waitressing.

The interviewer had immediately told her that evening that she was good for this. And today, she'd accepted her first offer. It was a restaurant she didn't know, here in town. It was a small shift, from 4PM to 8PM, not even until the restaurant closed.

She felt safe knowing that her first ever waitressing shift would be over in a mere 4 hours.

She showed up and spoke to the manager, who was kind enough to show her around the restaurant. He then gave her a costume, and she put it on before being sent to serve tables.

The people were generally kind and considerate, although there were some younger folks being hard on her for checking ID's before serving alcohol. Better safe than sorry, is what the manager had said when Lexi returned to the kitchen after seeing it happen.

The four hours went by faster than she initially expected them to. Her colleagues were nice as well, and reminded her that they were all only human by not being perfect either. Another girl dropped a plate of food. She quickly rushed to help the girl clean, and got a thankful smile from the manager, who'd also come to the rescue.

At the end of Lexi's shift, another girl, Alana, was also done with her shift. They'd talked for a bit when Alana asked to go for a drink, so she could give her some advice on the job. Alana had been using the same platform as Lexi had for at least a year, so she had some experience. Lexi couldn't say no.

"I know this bar, it's really good," Alana said while they were walking around the streets, pulling Lexi along with her. "Um—I'm not 21 yet," Lexi murmured before Alana could pull her into the bar.

"You think I am 21? Believe me, this place never cards anyone," The other girl replies.

And so, they walk into the bar and sit down. "Okay, I'm going to give you a shit ton of advice on how to make good money as a waitress in the next hour," Alana laughs. "I do have a bit of a booty call planned for after that, so I'mma have to let you go around 10-ish. But before that, drinks on me."

Lexi smiled at that. At least she knew she wasn't stuck here for the rest of the night. Alana seems very nice, she really does, but it just felt a bit uncomfortable going into a bar for the first time and it being with a girl she literally just met an hour ago.

"That's all good," She replies.

"Okay, the best fucking advice I can give you, right here," Alana started, then standing up and walking over to the bartender, "Can I get four shots of vodka?" She asked him.

Before Lexi could really understand what was going on, Alana put four shots down on their table. "Before every fucking shift you gotta have something to calm the nerves, believe me. People will just like you a whole lot better, it will get you hella tips." She explained.

Lexi chuckled at that. "Honestly, that's kind of a great idea. I definitely overthink everything I say when I'm at some people's table, but you're right, loosening up gets people to like you more."

She hadn't been getting a lot of tips during that first shift, but she realized that the more she had loosened up around people, the more they had tipped her.

They both took a shot glass and poured the content of it down. Lexi's throat burned, but she already saw Alana grab a second shot glass. She followed her lead and they both threw their second shot back. Lexi scrunched her eyebrows together and shook her face to get rid of the aftertaste.

"Honestly, being a bit tipsy will help you mostly with the older men. You won't care about their flirtatious remarks as much, hell, it will be funny at times," Alana said.

"You got those kinda men a lot?" Lexi questioned her.

Alana nodded, "Yeah, definitely. More often than not. Want a drink?"

"Yeah," Lexi said, "I'll have a vodka cranberry."

She watched Alana walk over to the bartender again, and she had to wait for a bit before she returned with two glasses. Lexi thanked the girl as she handed her her drink.

"But you don't gotta worry too much about the old men, they'll usually keep their hands to themselves and tip big time, especially if you leave the top buttons of your work blouse open," Alana continued.

Lexi jotted it all down in a mental notebook. A drink before shift, top buttons of blouse open. She could do that if it meant having to work fewer shifts for the money she needed.

"They'll usually keep their hands to themselves?" Lexi repeated part of Alana's sentence.

"Sometimes you'll have to remind them to, sometimes you gotta go to your manager and get them kicked out. It happens, every couple of shifts there's a perv and you gotta stand your ground." She explains.

Lexi sips her drink.

"And you have to be careful when you have to work a closing shift. Sometimes creeps like to hang out around restaurants till closing time. I noticed you came by bike, but a car would probably be safer. Having someone pick you up, even more so." Alana continued.

Oh well, it was this or getting sold off somewhere by a crazy scary old lady. She was willing to take the risk.

Lexi and Alana talked for another two hours or so until Alana looked at the time on her phone and told Lexi she really had to leave, as she had completely forgotten about the time. They were a couple of drinks in and had been having a good time talking about things other than work.

Lexi was definitely tipsy by this time.

She felt it more so when she finally stood up, the world spinning and her legs heavy. Maybe the fourth glass had been one too many. Or maybe it was the tequila shots they did half an hour ago, she wasn't sure.

She trusted herself to be able to bike, but it was just a tad bit difficult.

She was swerving over the road, and when a car honked at her, she didn't know if it was harassment or because she was swerving. Probably the latter.

"Love you too," Lexi mumbled, rolling her eyes.

She didn't really know where she was going.

She just kept pushing her legs up and down, holding on to the bike's handlebars for dear life, until she recognized the neighborhood. Fez lived here somewhere.

For some reason, she navigated towards his house. Instead of her own.

She kind of needed to talk to him, actually. Today, they had only seen each other shortly and not really spoken, and yesterday, well yesterday had been total shit. They hadn't even had the chance to talk.

She missed him.

Before Lexi knew it, she was at his house, feeling like an absolute creep. Her heart thudded in her throat again and as soon as she got off her bike, she tried to get back up on it again.

But that was too difficult it seemed. The earth beneath her feet was moving too fast.

The only person that could help her right now had to be Fez, Lexi thought to herself.

But maybe Fez was asleep? It was like 11 PM, after all. She didn't really want to wake him up. She walks for a bit with her bike in her hands, before she falls down somewhere after just a few steps.

She remains seated on the hard asphalt. She laughs at herself, at how horribly sad and silly the situation is. She's growing up to be just like her mom, isn't she? She loves being this funny. She always wants to feel like this.

She slaps herself.

Then she pulls out her phone and dials Fez. The one person who gives her a feeling better than this.

"Yo, Lexi," She's grateful when she hears his voice. He doesn't sound tired.

"I didn't wake you up?" She asks him, to make sure.

"Nah, Lex, it's like eleven. I don't sleep so early, you know," He replies, a bit surprised at the question given that this is the time around which they normally call.

"How are you doing?" He then asks, when Lexi doesn't really say anything back.

"I'm good! Good, good." She slurs a bit when she says it.

"Hmm, you done with your school work? All caught up?" He asks, trying to ignore the way she sounds for a second.

"I don't think so, I had a few drinks with Alana, she's very nice, you should meet her. But now I'm a bit... I don't know. I'm a bit tipsy, sorry." She chuckles when she says it, and somehow has a hard time quitting the chuckling.

Fez grins, "That's alright. Who's Alana? I'on think I have ever heard about that friend."

"I met her today, and she took me to a bar, and we had drinks, it was nice," She plays with the hair tie around her wrist, "But then I got on my bike, and somehow ended up here," She bursts out laughing again.

The grin on Fezco's face disappears slowly, as he feels somewhat distressed about Lexi getting on her bike and being outside like this.

"Somehow ended up where? I'm gonna go pick you up, shorty," He tells her.

"No, Fez, this is too bad, I am awful," Lexi is still laughing as she says it.

"What?" He asks.

"I mean, I didn't really want to go here, but then I did, and now I feel like a massive creep, and I'm sorry, it's stupid." She suddenly stops laughing, now sounding more serious.

"Nah Lex, you good. Where are you? I'm coming to pick you up." He repeats his question.

"Well, where are you ?" Lexi's the one asking now. She hears Fezco chuckle, "Uh, home. Your turn now for real though, where you at?"

"I wanted to see you," Lexi whispers into the phone. "So I'm like, right by your house. But don't wanna be a burden," She finally confesses.

"Yo, Lexi Howard, you for real now? You ain't ever a burden. You're always welcome here," His voice sends electricity through her spine, especially when he says her name like that.

She suddenly realizes that she's still seated on the asphalt, right next to her bike. In her struggle of standing up straight and getting her bike up from the floor, she completely misses Fez walking up behind her.

"Lexi," He drawls, "Let me help you."

He took the bike out of her hands, and they walked back to his house, where he places the bike against the wall of his house.

"Come on in," He gestures for Lexi to come through the doorway, and she follows him inside. The house still smells like weed, even though Lexi is pretty sure Fez has been smoking a lot less since prison.

"You need sum' water, I think," Fezco states, and without her approval, he fills a glass up to the brim.

Grateful, Lexi takes it from his hands.

"So, how'd you end up going to a bar?" He asks her for an explanation. She figures she owes him that much.

"Girl I met, she took me to this bar. She was really nice," Lexi basically repeats to him what she's said to him on the phone, and Fez figures he's not going to be getting much more info about it.

Lexi takes a big gulp from the glass of water, aware that she needs to keep drinking water in order to minimize the hangover she's going to have to endure tomorrow morning in class.

"You been going to the bar a lot?" She then hears him ask, and even though she wasn't really nauseous, now maybe she is. She shouldn't have come over, she shouldn't have made him aware of the fact that she'd been drinking. Now he thinks she's an alcoholic, great.

She looks him in the eyes and shakes her head. "No, today's my first time in a bar, like, ever. I promise you, I don't usually get smashed like this," The words are out of her mouth before she knows it. She needs him to know that she's not like all of his customers, she's not just another person addicted to substances.

He smiles at her. "Let's sit you down on the couch, or do you want me to drop you off at home?"

Lexi is leaning against the wall. "I don't want to go home," She says. She stares into the glass she's holding.

"C'mon Lex," Fez places a hand onto her shoulder and guides her towards the couch, where they sit down. "You cold? I can grab you a blanket or something," He asks. She shakes her head.

"Fez, I don't want you to see me as an alcoholic or something. I'm so sorry about showing up here like this." Lexi apologizes.

"Shorty, trust me, Ion' see you like that. I'm glad you turned up here, you had me worried for a sec that you were out somewhere by yourself, wouldn't want that," His eyes sparkle when he looks at her, but then, out of nowhere, go dark. The smile on his lips stiffens.

Lexi looks down at her glass again when it happens. She then feels the warm touch of his hands on her jaw. The touch is painful but soothing, as if his fingers were to contain some kind of heavenly cure.

She brings her face up and they make eye contact, his hand cupping her face now.

"Yo, I don't want to pry, but you really gotta tell me what happened to yo face," He says softly, and it doesn't sound like an order, yet Lexi feels like she can't do anything other than oblige.

"I bumped into a wall," She whispers it, not wanting to disturb the moment. It's like a dream, and any noise could wake her up and return her to the sad reality of things at this point.

"You sure about that? I don't gotta beat no one up for putting hands on you?" His voice is raspy, and Lexi knows her flushed face must speak volumes.

"I don't even know anyone who could possibly do that. Nate always kind of scared me, seeing the way he choked Maddy and hurt her, but he's far away. I don't really know that many psychos." Lexi tried to reinforce her lie, almost making herself believe that she just accidentally crashed her face into a wall.

"Hmm," Fez murmured, "You know, my dad, he used to get me bruises like this."

She feels her stomach turn, and her heart ache. They never really talked about their parents, Lexi had only occasionally discussed Suze and her drinking problem, always leaving her dad out of the scope. Fez had talked about his grandmother Marie, and how she'd snatched him from his dad's supervision, but never really mentioning why.

"Fez, I'm so sorry about that. Is that why your grandmother took you in?" She hears herself ask.

"Yeah, I never really saw my dad after that," He says. Lexi isn't entirely sure if she should tell him about her past with her dad, or if she should leave her story out of it. This really isn't about her.

"Well, he was a shit dad. You deserved better," She makes her way out of his grip, although his hands are nice, she's tired. Without second-guessing herself, she positions her head against his shoulder. They've never really been this close before.

She hears a huff come from his mouth.

"My dad was alright, but he changed." Lexi bit her lip, she didn't really want to go into this.

"How so?" Fez asked cautiously.

"It's a long story... But he's gone now, that's what matters." If she goes on talking about her dad, she might slip up and say she's seen him last summer. She doesn't know if she can then bite her tongue about what happened. She can't afford to tell him about her situation with Laurie, because she knows he'd help her in whatever way he could. She can't pull Fez into her mess.

"Word." Fez says so softly she barely hears him say it.

"I'll tell you about him sometime," She promises, "But right now, I like, don't really want to think about him."

"That's okay. You don't gotta if you don't want to. Sometimes people leave and we gotta leave them too, y'know." He tells her.

"I don't like when people leave," She almost chokes on her words, "Like, Cassie changed and then she left too. Rue changed and almost left, I'm still scared she will." She took a breath, "I get scared you'll leave, too."

She felt him tense up next to her, and she lifted her head off his shoulder when she felt him sit upright.

He then did something she didn't quite expect, but wasn't mad about either. He puts his arm around her, and she is pulled in closer to his chest. "I ain't leaving, Lexi." He speaks.

Lexi turns herself around in his grasp, tugging her hands around his torso, almost placing herself into his lap. She looks at his face, and they interlock eyes. Their lips were now so close, Fezco could smell the vodka cranberry she drank an hour ago. Lexi felt her heart beat faster and faster.

She'd always fantasized her first kiss (first real kiss that is, not counting the one she shared with Rue) to be romantic, with some guy dropping her off at home before midnight, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, before their mouths gracefully met under the moonlight.

Right now, she's sitting on the couch of the guy she's in love with, where she was almost crying just a second ago, after showing up tipsy and saying dumb things. Yet, it set her entire body on fire.

Lexi was the one initiating the kiss, but Fez didn't back away, or stiffen, or worse, push her away. He instantaneously moved along with her, moving his hands along her back and pulling her into his lap. Lexi's arms were thrown around his neck, and if heaven was real, she wanted it to be this. She could stay like this forever, and so could he.

Lexi felt the wetness of his tongue entangle with her own, and she knew that they were both turned on as she could feel the slight bulge underneath her thigh. One of her arms escaped from behind his neck and raked up along his torso. She heard him groan.

His mouth slipped away from hers, moving over her skin, along her jaw, which is when she flinched, and he pulled away. She didn't want him to.

"Are you okay?" He gasped.

Lexi nodded, trying to catch her breath. She buried her head into his chest, and she felt his hand going through her hair. Lexi had sobered up completely, and she was now drunk on something else.

Her hand was splayed on Fezco's chest, his striped polo being the only thing between her and his skin. When Lexi lifted her head again, he had a weird look on his face. He didn't look happy.

She quickly felt herself become nauseated.

She pulled away. "Are you okay?" She asks, biting her tongue. Did she do something wrong? Questions suddenly flooded her mind. "Yeah—no, it's fine." He stumbled across his words.

"Sorry, did I—did I do something wrong?" The bile rising in her throat was burning up, as did the tears that were starting to form behind her eyes. She thought he liked it, that he enjoyed it, but now she was starting to doubt herself. Had she just completely misread the situation? Had she ruined a good friendship?

God, how stupid could she be, she thought to herself. His silence was absolute torture. But then, to make matters worse, she heard a knock on Fezco's front door. At this time? Lexi got out of his lap and stood up. "I should probably go," She breathed.

"Lex," Fezco huffed and got up after her. "I'mma check on the door, let's just—let's just talk about this after, okay?"

Another knock on the door. "Fezco, come on, I know you're awake in there!" Lexi heard Rue.

"I'm kind of tired, I'm just—I'll just head home," She opened the door for Rue, who stopped her from barging out. "Lex, what are you doing here? This time of day? Oh my God," She blathers. "I was just heading out, actually," Lexi tells her. She doesn't even feel the need to ask what Rue is doing here, this time of day.

Rue grabs her arm, "C'mon, stay, I'm so bored, I need my friends." She tries to sway her, but Lexi pulls herself free and heads over to her bike. "Sorry Rue, another time," She blurts out. "Goodnight," She says before hopping onto her bike and driving off into the night.  

Chapter Text

Lexi had slammed the door behind her when she got home. Her mom was passed out on the couch as usual, probably drunk. She was thankful for not having to endure some stupid speech and rushed into her room.

How could she have been this stupid?

To think anyone would want her was a gross misjudgment, a blunt show of her own arrogance. It was embarrassing.

For the past couple of months she had been dreaming of a future with Fez, at some points it had even been the only thing that actually kept her going.

It made her sick. The overwhelming guilt for thinking the way she did, and then carelessly assuming that he would even ever want to be more than her friend.

No. She remained to be Little Howard. Always shadowed by better, prettier, bolder girls.

She hadn't been bold until she chose the wrong moments, the wrong ways to be bold. Like tonight.

She couldn't do it the way her sister tied boys around her finger. She certainly didn't have the physical assets for it, but neither did she have any sort of characteristic charm that pulled people towards her.

She had stupid facts taken from books, she had the tea about the drama that took place around her, she had trust issues that haunted her, a debt to pay and good grades every now and then.

She had no real friends left.

Funnily, Laurie was the only one left that seemed to need her now. Maybe Rue did too, given that her 900$ could possibly save her life.

As a friend, she felt discarded. Rue had Jules back, Fez, Elliott. And Lexi wasn't the overly jealous type, she just felt replaced.

Over the summer Rue had been calling Lexi to hang out, but that was over now.

Maddy had made new friends at her college, and Kat, well Kat was Kat.

She'd consider texting Bobbi, but she hadn't spoken to her in months and Lexi wasn't even sure where she was in college.

Ethan was nice to her still, but he and BB had been going out for a bit and she didn't want to intrude or interfere. It was an odd couple, Lexi had thought at first. But so far, BB was a lot better to Ethan than Kat had been, even if she gave him diseases with her endless vaping.

And Fez? Well, she didn't really want to see him. She couldn't. She could physically not handle the humiliation.

The thoughts inside her mind went dark, so she reminded herself of the fact that things would be done in this town within less than a year from now.

But how could she possibly get out of this town without money?

She currently had a total of 75 bucks to her name, all that she made waitressing the night before.

If she worked the same shift the next 30 days, and got the same amount in tips, she'd not even cover her own debt. Maybe she just needed to run, far, far away from here.

Would Laurie still find her hundreds of miles out of state?

She realized very well how perfectly her dad had timed the whole thing. Now that Cassie was on the East coast, she was probably safe from the reach of their dad's drug dealer. If he'd given up his daughters as insurance, he surely knew who he'd protect and who he'd sacrifice.

Ultimately, she knew she was never and would never be anyone's first choice.

But at the moment, that wasn't really supposed to be her biggest issue.

Money, was the issue.

If she went straight from school to any possible closing shift she could get, everyday, for the next 30 days, while also working entire weekend days, she could make it. But then she had no time for homework, no time to read a book for fun. No time to sit and cry.

She got up from her bed and frantically began searching her sister's side of the room. She had already taken every valuable thing she owned herself and sold it off, but Cassie must have left something behind that can be worth money.

If their dad had given Lexi a 400 dollar necklace, she could only imagine what he'd gifted Cassie.

As she opened one of the drawers, her eyes were immediately drawn to a blue-colored necklace. Upon better inspection, Lexi realized it was the exact same one she sold off at the pawn store.

She disentangled the necklace from a web of other jewelry, then gracefully picked it up and held it in front of her. It was an easy 300 bucks.

But Lexi couldn't do that.

She hadn't stooped that low, not yet. She would have to forget about the notion of free time for a while, and work until there was no more work.

It would perhaps even get her mind off Fez.

Her phone buzzed. Speak of the devil.

Fez: u got home safe?

She didn't want him to care. She didn't want him to make her heart flutter right after he stomped it.

Lexi: yes

It was a simple text. It was the last one she was sending him, at least for a while.

She shut her phone off and threw it into the corner of her room, silently praying the screen wouldn't crack. She can live without it for a while, but some time, she's going to need to use it again. And she wouldn't want it to be broken then.

She sets her alarm on the manual clock in her room, and the horrific noise it makes that next morning at 7 makes her wish for an early grave.

When she raises her head from her pillow and is met with a throbbing headache, she is reminded of the drinks she washed down at the bar, and then of her little adventurous drive to Fez, and then of course of her ultimate failure on his couch.

She grits her teeth and gets up regardless. On her laptop, she accepts an 8-hour closing shift at some restaurant for today. She leaves her phone alone, not willing to take calls or read text messages.

She gets through the school day without it just fine.

She finishes early and gets home to take a shot of vodka before work. She took Alana's advice to heart.

It's only during her bike ride that she begins to miss her phone. The lack of music is one thing, the lack of Google Maps a second. Navigating her way to an address she's only glanced over one time on a map on her laptop wasn't easy, but she found it in time.

The manager seemed too busy to really speak to Lexi, simply giving her a random costume and telling her to go change in the restrooms. The place looked fancy, though, and she hoped that rich people would be giving her rich people tips.

Before walking back out of the restroom, Lexi unbuttoned the top two buttons of her blouse and tied the apron she had to wear over it really tight around her waist.

Although it was double the amount of hours she did the night before, the evening seemed to go just as quickly. Before she knew it, she was telling customers that they were closing up the restaurant in a bit.

Lexi had constantly been tugged from one place to the other, she had even been scolded by the manager for being slow, yet still, she believed it had been worth her while. With all the tips she got, she'd made almost three times the amount she'd received during her first shift.

It was only after that, that Lexi really feels like not taking her phone with her was extremely stupid. It's a bit of a ride home, and this part of town has no lights or people to surround her with.

She wanted to keep her phone close in case a creep pushed her off her bike, but she had no phone with her. So instead, she drove home with her key in her hand, so she could quickly resort to it as a weapon if necessary.

Lexi gets home safely and crashes into her bed. She hadn't really spoken to anyone that day, except for the strangers in the restaurant. She hadn't seen her mom, as she'd been off to work before she'd gotten out of her room and now likely already found herself back in bed.

She hadn't seen Rue at school, either. She wondered if Rue was taking drugs again, if that was why she showed up Fezco's place late last night and why she had a 900$ debt with Laurie. She should have noticed something, but she didn't.

She grabs her phone from the corner of her room and turns the device on again. She wasn't really sure about what to expect, but she knew she needed her phone back to simply make her life a bit easier.

5 missed calls, 7 text messages

She didn't want to read any of them, but already saw Fezco's name in the notification. She quickly swiped the notifications away to forget about it.

There was something she had to check before going back to bed. Quickly, she looked over at the website for the East Highland courthouse to see if there had been any new developments in Ashtray's trial.

She didn't go there today for several reasons, the first being that she couldn't miss out on school for another day this week and she had to work right after, the second being that she was avoiding Fez, for obvious reasons.

But she wanted to be there when the verdict was being read out. Over the past few months, she had been talking to Ashtray every so often and she felt like she needed to be there to support him, even if they weren't best friends.

According to the website, the jury had gone into deliberations this afternoon. They hadn't reached a verdict yet, and would continue deliberations the next morning.

Lexi was torn between whether she should be at the courthouse or school the next day. Jury deliberations could take long, they could be taking several working days. If she'd go to the courthouse, she might be there all day waiting for nothing and somehow needing to find a way to avoid Fez, which would be practically impossible.

No, she decided instead to keep the website open on her phone and refresh it every 2 minutes while in class. If it said a verdict had been reached, she'd simply ride her bike to the courthouse as fast as she possibly could. Unless she was at work, then she couldn't.

It was around 2.45 PM, during her history class, when she saw on her phone screen that there was a new development in the trial. Verdict reached.

She swiftly got up from her seat, grabbed her backpack, and put her hand on her stomach. "Um—sorry, miss, I feel sick, um—gotta go," She improvised. She quickly ran out of the classroom, the eyes of her fellow classmates burning in her back. "Uh, go by the nurse's office!" She heard her teacher yelling after her.

It was a first for Lexi to skip out on class like that.

And if it weren't for the fact that Ash could either be free or imprisoned in a couple of hours, she would probably be panicking about the possible repercussions of her walkout.

She didn't really have time to panic, although the adrenaline her acts had served her did get her to speed up her bike ride to the courthouse. Which was good, because the jury could be coming into the courtroom anytime soon.

She was out of breath by the time she'd reached it, and put her bike away hastily. When she turned around the corner to the entrance, she noticed Fez put out a cigarette on the floor before he went inside the courthouse. Thankfully, there was no way he'd seen her. It also told her she was still in time for the verdict.

She turned back to her bike, pacing around and trying to catch her breath. Her heart was thudding in her throat again.

Was she even right to be here? She suddenly felt out of place. Maybe Ashtray didn't even want her there. He'd been nice to her when she showed up and talked to him, that didn't mean he actually liked her.

When she noticed Rue's bike, she decided to just take a leap of faith and go for it.

She went inside, through the whole security procedure, until she finally got inside the court room as one of the very last people to enter. She sat down on the bench all the way at the back, seeing the back of Fez's head next to Rue's some rows in front of her.

Ashtray was seated with his defense attorneys in the front, an innocent, childlike, look on his face. They really had done a nice job at making him look all mellow. She saw how he got up from his seat when the judge came into the courtroom. The rest of the people in the courtroom followed, and so did Lexi.

She sat down again when the judge told them to.

"Has the jury reached a verdict?" The judge directed his question at one of the jury members.

"Yes, your Honor," She heard a woman reply.

"And this is a unanimous verdict?" The judge asked.

"Yes, your Honor," The woman repeated.

She then handed some paperwork over to a court clerk, who then handed it over to the judge. The judge glimpsed over the paperwork, then said, "The defendant will now rise to face the jury and hear its verdict."

Ashtray got up from his chair, and he seemed nervous. It was a genuine reaction, not fabricated to deceive the jury. After all, by now, all was said and done.

Absolute silence came over the courtroom, until the judge scraped his throat and began reading. "State of California versus Ashtray O'Neill, as to the count of murder in the second degree," He started. "We the jury find the defendant Ashtray O'Neill not guilty."

Ashtray fell back into his seat, and you could see a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. She had never seen the kid in this much distress, and this much relief, ever before. She didn't even think he had those kind of emotions, to be fair.

The judge now turned himself to the jury and asked each of them if they agreed with the verdict as it was read, then thanked them for their service.

Ashtray finally stood up to lock eyes with Fez, their brotherhood made clear to everyone around. When Fez stood up and attempted to walk over to Ash, Ash shortly made eye contact with Lexi. He shot her a grateful smile, and Lexi was happy she hadn't walked away when her mind told her to.

As Fez argued with one of the cops about getting to Ash, Lexi walked out. She was wrong for thinking she could get out without being spotted by anyone, because now Rue was running after her. "Hey, Lex!" She called out.

"You came! Fez and I were worried you wouldn't be there," She started. "We tried to call you, too, but you didn't pick up."

"Oh, no, I wouldn't miss it. But I guess I missed your calls," She replied. She actually needed to get going, as she had another shift to work in 15 minutes.

"Fez wanted me to stop you from walking out, he had me run after you," Rue laughed and rolled her eyes. So he did see her? Lexi wondered why it was that the only times she wasn't invisible to people were when it didn't suit her.

"Um—I have to go, I'm sorry Rue. Tell him I'm happy for Ashtray and him, I'll see him later some time," Lexi turned around to go to her bike. But Rue could never let her off that easy.

"Where? Where'd you have to go?"

Lexi figured maybe she should just tell her about the job. It wasn't really all that suspicious for her to have a job, actually.

"Work, um—I've been making some extra money for college next year," She answered.

"Really, where do you work?" Rue inquired.

Lexi sighed, and looked at the time on her phone. "It's a café, but uh, Rue, I really really can't be late, sorry. I'll see you another time," Lexi finally got the chance to get to her bike, as she left Rue behind her in the courthouse.

She barely had 10 minutes to get there now, and it was always a bit of a search with every new place she worked. Tonight it was a café she worked, not a restaurant as usual.

It was a bit harder for her to get through that shift than her earlier ones, Lexi found. Maybe it was the lack of alcohol she had consumed before her job, maybe it was the overflow of alcohol customers consumed at her job.

There were a lot of adolescents drinking here, and although they were mostly fun drunks, others were just flat-out annoying. They came in packs and found it funny to be pulling her into basically every conversation, asking her questions they had no business asking. She had other tables to serve, better things to do.

She did have to admit that they gave her a nice tip, which in turn kind of made it all okay again.

After her shift, some colleagues asked her to stay and have a drink, so she did. The manager had already left and they had to close everything up after.

"So, Lexi, tell us a lil' bit about yourself," One of the girls, Maria, started questioning her.

"Well, I'm Lexi. I have a sister, and um—what am I supposed to tell you about, actually? I go to school, high school, it's college next year, but that's about all there is to my life," She took another sip of her drink.

"You ain't got a boyfriend or nothin'? You lookin' like you got one," Scott yelled from the kitchen.

"Oh, no. No boyfriend," She chuckled. She felt herself becoming flushed.

"Thought he was the one who beat you up for a sec," Tina said, staring at the bruise on her face. Lexi laughed it off.

"Girl, we gotta set you up with someone," She heard Carrie. Lexi shook her head. "No, no, I'm not really looking to date or anything, really." She states, obtaining her a weird look from the people around her.

"Ooh, you definitely got your eye set on someone, huh." Carrie replied to her. Lexi did not yet consume enough alcohol to spill anything about her feelings, so she simply went over to grab another drink.

When her phone showed it was 2 AM, she felt she needed to go home. She told her coworkers goodbye and drove home. Biking through the town at night didn't get less scary, but thankfully the café wasn't too far away. She needed to sleep, as the next day would be a very long one. She had two shifts scheduled, a morning shift at some diner, then another café.

For Sunday, she had similar plans. She needed the money, fast. By the rate she was currently going, she was set to make the 3.5k in three weeks. But that was only if things went smoothly.

She needed some kind of backup plan, but she just didn't know what that could possibly be.

When she got home from the café, Lexi expected her mom to be asleep, in her bed. But instead, her mom was slumped on the couch, throwing up in a bucket that was placed beside her. She looked miserable. Lexi looked for the bottles, but she couldn't find any near the couch or on the table.

"Mom?" She murmured.

"Lexi? You come home this late?" Her mom looked up as if she wasn't just vomiting.

"Are you okay?" Lexi asked.

"I left work early, I think I've fallen ill. I don't know what it is, maybe I've eaten something wrong," Her mom said, her voice croaking.

Lexi walked over to the couch and put her hand atop her mother's forehead. "God, you're burning up. Definitely running a fever," She said. She walked over to the kitchen and grabbed a tea towel, taking ice from the freezer to turn it into an icepack.

She came back and put the icepack on her mom's forehead.

"Thank you, Lex." Suze says. Lexi sat down on the couch next to her and shot her a smile.

"Where'd you come from, though? I can smell the alcohol here, makin' me all nauseous again," Her mom sniffed.

Lexi chuckled. "Just some friends, mom. Try to get some sleep," She stood up to walk off to her room. "Goodnight, Lex," She heard behind her. "Goodnight, mom." She replied.

It was easy for Lexi to fall asleep that night, but when she slept, it wasn't for long. She had a bad dream. And she felt guilty for dreaming it, because inside of her dream, her mom died. The last person she had.

And she'd gone to Fezco and Rue, inside her dream, but Rue told her she needed to cut her off because she reminded her too much of all the bad times in her life. Then Fezco told her he only hung out with her because he felt sorry for her, and he told her that he knew that was bad, so he wasn't going to do it anymore. He wasn't going to hang out with her anymore. He'd also gotten himself a girlfriend, a girl that looked just like Cassie.

When she woke up, right after seeing them kiss, it was only 5 AM. She was crying. She knew very well that getting any more sleep that night was no option. Her alarm was set to go off at 8 AM anyway, she'd just catch up on schoolwork until then.

At 9.15 AM, Lexi was walking around the diner bringing around coffee and bagels. Till midnight, she was taking orders and bringing food. It was a good thing she had to keep running around because she knew if she were to sit down, she'd fall asleep in an instant.

When she was asked to have some drinks with her coworkers as usual after her shift, she kindly declined, truthfully telling them how tired she was. When one of them offered her some Adderall, she laughed as if it'd been a joke, but the guy was dead serious. "No, thank you though," She hastily added after she'd realized.

She went home again, tired and starved. She grabbed a cracker to still her hunger before going to bed, gave her mother a new icepack, and set a glass of water beside her on the table. Her mom was asleep now, but she still looked wretched.

When Lexi finally got comfortable beneath her blanket, she still couldn't really sleep, even with how tired she was. She wondered where her life was heading, because she couldn't figure it out at all. Maybe she was meant to be alone.

The next morning, Lexi got ready to be working at another diner. She had scheduled a shift at a diner and then another long shift at a restaurant.

But she was still so tired. And living on crackers made her feel like hell. But it was the only thing she could take from home, and her ten-minute breaks always felt like two seconds. She was looking a bit more like a zombie than an actual human being by the time she left for the restaurant. An Advil had to save her.

Maybe Lexi should have gone home instead. 

Chapter Text

The restaurant she had to work at that night was a longer bike ride than she expected. It was actually not even within the bounds of East Highland, it was located in a neighboring town. She should have probably driven her car there, but it was too late for that now.

Once Lexi was changed into the simple work costume, consisting of a simple red blouse with their logo, she was ready to work. It was only 3, so the restaurant was still fairly empty. It was nice, because in that way she could ease into the work.

After somewhat more than 4 hours, Lexi finally got a break. She walked into the small canteen behind the kitchen and got seated. Her manager followed her into the canteen and took a look at her, scrunching his eyebrows.

"Do you have any makeup on you? You look sick," He said. Lexi couldn't really tell if she should feel insulted. Her manager was a middle-aged man, his hair slicked back giving him a somewhat cocky look, but he had seemed nice up until that moment.

"Um, I don't, actually. I'll just splash some cold water into my face," Lexi said, not really knowing what else she could possibly do about it.

"Okay. If you're hungry, you can grab some food. We got some things back there for staff only. And you can take a longer break than I initially told you, it's not all that busy. I'll give you twenty-five minutes," He nodded towards the cabinet, then walked out again.

Lexi had been starving, so of course, she had to grab some food. She ended up making herself a sandwich, and grabbed a bag of pretzels. She really needed the food.

Before Lexi knew it, her twenty-five minutes were over again. She quickly splashed some tap water in her face and took a long hard look in the mirror. She didn't look great, she'd admit. But she'd be better tomorrow, as she was not working for as long. She'd be in school in the morning, and she didn't do anything there anyway, really.

As Lexi walked over to the new table she was assigned to serve, her eyes lingered on a table a few tables away from the one she had to serve. Her heart stopped for a second, and then she had to recover, go on, act like nothing was wrong.

"Hi! I'll be serving your food tonight, have you guys made a decision yet as to what it may be?" She asked, arriving at a booth with a table seating four old men. They all looked up from their conversation.

"Yeah, I thought I had a decision," One of the men started talking. As he went silent again, Lexi just stood there, batting her eyelashes at him. She raised her eyebrows, sending him a confused look, waiting for him to continue.

"I thought I wanted the chicken salad with fregola, but now I'm thinking you...," He squinted his eyes to look at the improvised name tag on her blouse, "... Lexi. Yeah, I might wanna get a taste of that instead." He licked his lips, and Lexi cringed.

His hair was dirty and grey, his face sweaty and wrinkled. She tried to fake a smile. "Sorry, sir, that's not on the menu," She said. "Hmm, well, if you'll write down your phone number I'll ring you up sometime. I pay big bucks for that kind of flesh,'' He said. Lexi swallowed the bile that was rising up her throat.

"Your order, sir?" She asked, a bit more harsh to let him know she wasn't liking his tone. "Yeah, I'll have the roast chicken salad with fregola, and a beer with it. That would be it, sweetheart." He then shrugs.

Lexi looked over at the man seated next to him. "Well, if you ring Frederick over here up, I'll be there too. Can't miss out on that," He says. So they're all going to be like this? How fantastic. They better tip well.

She took on the rest of the men's orders and then quickly walked off back to the kitchen, reminding herself of the fact that she should be grateful that she got this table to serve and not the table a few tables over from theirs. The table which seated Ashtray and Fez.

Fez was seated with his back to the kitchen, and there was just no way he'd been able to see her from his vantage point. But Ashtray, on the other hand, sat opposing Fez and had a great view of the kitchen. Although she hadn't dared to look at Ash for longer than a second, she was pretty sure he'd noticed her.

Lexi tried to ignore it. She took orders from the other tables, served food. Brought Frederick and his three friends their beers. "There she is again," Frederick smiled. He surely seemed to be the leader of the group. "He's been waiting for you this whole time," The guy opposing Frederick stated.

"Uh huh," Lexi murmured, while putting the beers down on the table. As she leaned over the table to place the glasses on there, she felt a hand on the back of her thighs. She was wearing a skirt, so the cold touch was against her bare skin. She shivered, but continued putting the drinks down.

His hand slid up and sure enough, he stroked over the fabric of her skirt until his hand stayed on her ass. He suddenly gripped onto her, and she wanted to shove his arm away, but in her panic, she slammed the beer bottle Frederick was holding onto in his other hand onto the ground.

"Got all excited there for a second, huh," He grinned, and the other men laughed. Lexi took a step back. She had attracted way too much attention, and she silently prayed that Fez hadn't turned his head around to see what the commotion was about. She quickly bowed down to grab the shards of glass off the floor.

"With your bare hands?" One of the man at the table asked in surprise. Yeah, it wasn't the smartest idea, but she wanted to disappear, and the closest thing to it was just making herself as small as possible by pretending to clean her mess. "She likes it bare," Another one of the man laughs.

For a second, Lexi loses her cool. "This is a restaurant, not a fucking strip club." She says as she collects the smallest shards of glass in her hand. "Oh, feisty," Frederick said. Lexi looks up to see him with a smug grin on his face. She sees his gaze fall, dropping down to the unbuttoned part of her blouse. "I like the view," He says. She almost throws up.

When she gets back inside the kitchen, she breaks down. Tears are rolling down her face, and she's finding it hard to breathe. She discards of the glass, finding it's cut her just slightly. "Lexi! What's happened?" She hears the manager of the restaurant rush towards her.

"I'm so sorry, it was just this guy, he like—he grabbed me, and said, like—just really gross stuff. I'm sorry," She tried to wave it off. "No, don't be," He hands her a tissue, "That's really messed up, I'm sorry that happened to you." He says, and Lexi dries her eyes. "It's fine, I'm just going to drink some water and I'll get back to them."

"Hmm, you don't really have to," He replies, "I just, I don't have any security people stand by tonight, which is why I kind of can't send people away. You could tell who did it to leave if he keeps pulling shit like that, I could even call the cops if you need me to. But I'd rather keep it peaceful in here," He says. Lexi nods. "It's fine, I was just panicking for a second there, it shouldn't happen again."

Lexi splashed some cold water in her face for the second time that night, and went back to the booth seating the four men with a mop to clean the beer from the ground. She didn't say anything, she just cleaned. "Hey, we wanna have another beer. This man just chugged mine, as he wasn't about to lick his own drink off the floor, so we're going to need 5 now."

"Okay," Lexi nodded while cleaning. Soon enough the floor was spotless again. She made her way back to put the mop back in its place, and brought the men their beers. They made no silly remarks this time, and she was glad. She went on about her night, serving food and drinks where necessary.

She kept throwing fast glances over at the table that seated Fez and Ash. They had received their food, and she saw that Ashtray had fries with steak, which was exactly what she would expect him to order for some stupid reason. Fez was drinking a beer, and well, she hadn't really looked at his food. Every time she looked she was afraid he'd stare right back at her. Even if she already knew Ashtray had probably told him she was walking around here serving food.

All the people she served were pretty nice that night, except for one obvious party. She knew it wasn't going to lead to any good when she served the four old men their 5th beer before they even got their meal. They had begun to talk louder, and they started making inappropriate remarks again when she walked past.

When she finally did get their meals out, they were all properly out of it. "C'mon Lexi, have dinner with us, darlin'." Frederick tried to pull her into the booth. She cussed. "No, I don't really want to," Lexi spoke. He held onto her arm and looked her in the eye. "I have a nice meal for you," He gestured towards his dick.

"Sorry, I'm not interested," She tries to shake him off.

The man raises his eyebrows, and she feels her heartbeat pick up. She doesn't want to cause a scene, so she relaxed her arm for a second. His grip remained tight.

He then drags himself out of the booth and stands in front of her. He's tall, much taller than her, much taller than she'd expected him to be.

"Who are you to turn me down?" His voice is raised, and Lexi quickly looks around her to see how embarrassed she should be, how many people were watching her right now.

"Who are you to turn me down?" He repeats himself a lot louder now, and Lexi begins to feel herself panic. Not right now, not right here, she begs herself.

"I'm sorry," She murmured now, as he grabs a beer bottle off the table and raises it to her head. "I could fuckin' smash your brains in right now, why you being so difficult, girl?" He was still yelling. His finger traced along her jaw, reminding her of the bruise that was placed there less than a week ago.

Everything around them had gone silent at this point, it was just her and this guy left. But the silence was disturbed faster than she could even really capture what was happening. She heard the sound of a chair clattering to the floor, footsteps rushing in their direction.

"Yo, yo! Hold up now, man, keep yo hands to your fuckin' self!" It was a voice she recognized.

The hand that was once so firmly around her arm suddenly comes loose, the hand tracing her jaw bone is violently torn off of her face.

Lexi heard another loud thud, and she realized that the sound came from her own body hitting the floor.

She looked up to see Fezco absolutely raging against this grey-haired old man. He had him pinned against the wall that separated the dining booths, and somehow the old man was still laughing.

"I think she's into older men, but if you insist, I can share. I'll let you dick her down, quit the jealousy, ginger," Lexi heard him say.

The entire restaurant was now following the course of events, and Lexi wanted to be swallowed into the ground. The fact that Fez had to hear all these things and see her like this; it was genuinely horrifying.

"You need to pay for yo food and get yo ass and yo friends' asses outta this restaurant, like right fuckin' now." Fez was seething.

"Or what?" Frederick looked a bit less brave than earlier, but still tried to keep that conceited smile up on his face.

"You seriously askin' right now? Me and my lil bro here fresh outta prison, we was celebratin' that shit. You for real gotta give me a reason to get back in there?" Fez spoke, and she hoped and prayed to God that Fez didn't do something stupid.

Hell, threatening the dude like this was already something stupid. He was on thin ice, being watched everywhere he went. A death threat wouldn't go down well on him in court, an assault even less so.

Lexi was still lying on the ground when she heard Frederick say, "Come on then guys. You heard the big man. We needa go. Fuckin' pussy place this, fucking shit hole. You bet I'm leaving a bad review."

Lexi heard the other men rise out of their seats, get out of the booth. One of them got out his wallet and put some bills down on the table.

"You better leave a bad review, yeah. Do it using your actual name though, so I can file a formal complaint at the police station and get you a lifelong ban from our place." It was the first time Lexi heard her manager speak up. The men didn't really respond to him, they just kept walking.

One of her female coworkers kneeled down next to Lexi, and it was then that she noticed how her leg was shaking so badly she could hear a ticking noise from her shoe continuously hitting the floor.

However much she tried to relax, she couldn't. She tried to get herself up from the ground, putting herself into a sort of half-sitting position, leaning back onto her elbows.

"Oh my God, are you okay? That was crazy," Lexi heard her colleague say, and she quickly nodded before looking up at Fez.

She needed to thank him.

Fez finally turned around after what seemed like an eternity, and he looked down at her. She felt a bit uncomfortable, given the awkward position she was sitting in and the fact that she couldn't get her leg to stop shaking.

He looked concerned, yet he walked away from her.

God, why were these things so difficult, Lexi thought to herself.

When Lexi finally got up with the help of two of her coworkers, she went back into the kitchen to calm down for a bit.

The restaurant was bustling again, people were enjoying their meals and talking loudly like nothing had happened. "I was about to call the cops right before that guy stepped in," She heard her manager. "He really came in clutch." He stated.

"Yeah," Lexi nodded. "Can I pay for his food? I just want to thank him, some way." She asked.

"Sure thing, go ahead. Get him and the boy he came with a dessert, too. That's on the house." Her manager said. "Are you sure you want to finish your shift, though? You can also just go home, I can imagine that being a bit hefty and all."

Lexi nodded. "Yeah, it will probably be better too, get my mind off this entire situation for a bit." She really did want to stay. She at least needed to thank Fez.

He looked like he understood. "Well, I guess most of the tables you served have been picked up by coworkers in the meanwhile. So just see if you can take on some of their work, it won't be very long anymore till the restaurant closes."

Lexi did as he asked. She went to her coworkers, whom by now all knew her name, and figured out what tables she'd take on from them.

It all went reasonably smooth, some guests recognizing her and telling her they felt sorry for her or that she should be pressing charges. Neither of which were things she really needed to hear, but it was better than whatever bullshit came out of the mouth of Frederick.

At some point, walking into the kitchen, her coworker Francis handed her a menu card. "Hey, I just took away the dishes from the table with that guy who scared the bitch. Heard you wanted to thank him with free dessert, so here you go." She'd said.

Lexi wasn't really sure how to go about it. She couldn't just be like, 'Hey thanks for scaring that dude! Have some free ice cream'. She knew Fez, and Fez knew her. And they weren't exactly in the best place before this whole thing went down.

She walked over to their table kind of hesitantly, Ashtray eyeing her before he even knew she was actually planning on going to their table.

She stood beside the table, and that's when Fez could finally see her. "Hi," She started, putting on a careful smile. "Yo, Lexi," Ashtray was first to respond. Even though there was a hardness to his voice, it sounded well-meant.

"Hey," Fezco slowly said. "Are you okay?" He then asked.

Lexi looked down, then nodded. "It's alright. I came here to thank you. You didn't need to do that," She replied.

"'Course I had to, Lex. That guy was way out of line, and soon as I saw it happen I knew I had to fuckin' do something." His voice was soft, and she couldn't help falling in love with him just that tiny bit more.

"Bro wanted to beat the shit outta him first time I told him I thought I saw him put hands on you, thought I was gonna have to physically restrain him or sum'." Ashtray laughed.

"Well, if you'd actually been sure you saw what you thought you saw I would have. 'S not right," Fezco shrugged.

"You think I wouldn't have whooped that pervert myself if I'd actually confirmed the guy was fuckin' with my sis? Like I stayed in my seat when you got up later but that was 'cause I needed to make sure I pulled you out before we hoppin' onto another murder charge," Ashtray hissed.

She instantly melted at the way he referred to her as his sis. So he really didn't actually dislike her?

"Hmm," Lexi murmured. "Well, it's gained you a free dinner. Dessert's on the house, too." Lexi handed the menu cards to them. She didn't really want to say she was the one paying for their dinner, as she assumed Fezco would not be taking her money.

"Yo, Lex, I didn't even know you worked down here." Fez then said, picking up a conversation.

Lexi didn't really know what to say. "Um—yeah, well, I don't really work here, I--, I've just been waitressing wherever, really," She struggled to find her words. She didn't really know if Fez wanted her to go back to the kitchen and leave them be, or if he wanted her to talk to them.

A loud bang behind her released her from the internal conflict. She quickly glanced over her shoulder to see one of her coworkers scramble to the floor in an attempt to gather shards of glass. "Sorry, duty calls," She smiles dumbly at the two men seated at the table.

"'Course, do your thing," Fez stated. Lexi batted her eyelashes at him one last time and then hurried to help her coworker.

"You sure you don't need me to pay anything? Like, at all? I feel kinda bad about it," Fez asked Lexi, as the clock displayed it was a little past 10.30 PM.

"No, don't worry 'bout it. Got it taken care of," Lexi affirmed to him.

"I shouldn't even tip you? Aren't tips like, your main source of income as a waitress?" He then asked.

Lexi shook her head. "No, no. But if you really want to, tip the girl who was serving you right before I was. She was your actual waitress, not me."

Fez nodded. "Hm. I'll do that, gotta cut soon though. Our boy has a curfew now that he lives with a foster fam." He looked at the boy sitting at the opposing side of the table.

Lexi snorted. "Oh, have you really?" Lexi peeked over, at Ashtray. The tough boy was not looking so happy.

"'S not funny. They makin' me go to that stupid fuckin' school, and they ain't even lettin' me drive there by car. I never even rode a goddamn bike in my life," He muttered. Fez and Lexi both laugh at his statement. 

"Wait, are you going to East Highland High?" She asked now, imagining how weird it would be for Ashtray to actually do so. The boy nodded at her. "Shit, yeah." He grumbled.

When Lexi felt a hand on her shoulder, she was quickly pulled out of her conversation. "Hey, Lexi, could you help out in the kitchen, do the dishes?" She heard the girl that served the table seating Fez and Ashtray ask her. Lexi looked at the two guys one last time and sent them a small nod as to say goodbye, then turned to the girl. "Yeah, of course."

As Lexi walked away, she heard the girl speak again, but this time directed at Fezco and Ashtray. "I thought it was really brave how you just went at that guy, you didn't even hesitate to step in." Lexi slowed her walking, to eavesdrop on the conversation. "It looked really attractive on you too," She heard the girl say. 

Obviously, Lexi had no right to be jealous. Especially not given everything that had happened in the past few days, with him making it clear to her that he really just sees her as a friend. Yet still, hearing the girl say it like that, with this flirtatious tone, instilled a disturbing kind of resentment towards the girl inside of her. She didn't really want to know what it was that Fez had to say to her. Maybe he'd ask for her number, flirt back. So Lexi walked back into the kitchen.

Together with another coworker, she washed the dishes. Time went by rather quickly from then on, and when they were finished around 11, the restaurant was just about to close. Fez and Ashtray had already left, and she wondered for a second if she should call him after finishing work. She really wanted to apologize for kissing him that night, and then ignoring him during the days following.

She decided she would. She would call him. But she just wasn't sure when. Either tonight, or tomorrow. She still had to figure it out.

Cleaning the entire restaurant took a lot longer than she really wanted it to. Lexi was silently mopping the floor in the kitchen, her coworkers doing dishes and cleaning tables. In the office, her manager was counting money with another coworker. 

It was finally around half past 12 that everything was all done and they could go home. Lexi was asked to stay for drinks, like Lexi had figured they would, but Lexi shook her head and declined. She realized all of a sudden how exhausted she still was, and how badly she was starving. The food she had during her break six hours before, was no longer giving her any energy whatsoever.

She quickly walked over to her bike, reminded of the sketchy roads she had to take to get to the restaurant. She bit her tongue and grabbed the keys to her home in one hand, gripping onto it as if it were a deadly weapon that she could use in the face of danger. 

"Lexi," She suddenly heard behind her, and tightened her grasp onto the key before recognizing the voice. 

"Fezco?" She turned around to see him stand there, still in his grey button-up. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows now, however. She realized it made him even more attractive, but quickly tried to rid herself of the thought.

"Was afraid you'd already left,'' He spoke, "I'm not letting you ride yo' bike in the dark like this."

"Oh, it's fine. I often ride my bike in the dark, it's safer than you'd think." It was a small lie, and she realized how stupid it sounded after she'd said it. 

"Nah, Lex. You just lucky. But something bad only has to happen once, and I'm not riskin' it." He rebutted. "So, c'mon now, let me put your bike in the trunk," He walked closer towards her, and as he took the bike from her hands, Lexi could smell the cologne on him. 

How could she ever be friends with him, if with every step he took, every move he made, she fell more in love with him? It was just embarrassing. And painful, that too. 

They started walking towards the car. Fezco was dragging her bike forward with one hand on the middle of the steering wheel, as if it was nothing.

"You know, I can't believe you never taught Ashtray how to ride a bike." She laughed, but upon repeating the words inside of her head, it kind of sounded like a sneer. She quickly quit her laughing, "I'm sorry, don't know why I said that. You did well raising him, especially given the circumstances."

He glanced over at her. "Nah, you good. I wish I showed him how to ride a bike. 'M glad he's still getting that kind of upbringing now though, you know, school and shit. Want him to make something of his life, he's a good kid."

"Yeah, of course. He is. Is the family he was placed in okay?" Lexi then inquired. She could see the Caddy now, as they walked into the parking lot beside the restaurant. 

"Hmm. They alright. They not too strict, which, ya know, Ashtray can live with. So, I got like a deal going on with them, that he can come by every now and then, maybe every weekend, if Ash goes to school and doesn't do wild shit. They allowed me to have dinner with him here tonight, 'cause his house is near."

Lexi nodded. "That sounds great. I mean, you can still see him and have fun. He didn't move hundreds of miles away," Lexi chirped. 

Fez popped open the trunk of his car and placed her bike inside of it. Lexi then got into the passenger seat of the car, Fez hopping in next to her and starting the car. 

They drove out of the parking lot, into the darkness.

She suddenly felt the tension rise, and knew she had to say something to break it. The reminder of her kiss shot through her head, and she spoke up before she could stop herself. "You know, I really am sorry about Wednesday night." She heard herself say, and she felt the temperature in the car drop.

"Nah, was my fault too." Fez replied, looking straight ahead. 

That wasn't true. She had been the one to come there, to make a fool of herself. It was not his fault.

"No, it was me. I really shouldn't have.. Like, I shouldn't have come at you like that." She retorted, and Fezco now looked over at her.

"Lex, you wasn't sober. I was." He scoffs, and Lexi shakes her head. 

"That doesn't even matter. I'd had some drinks, yeah, but I honestly sobered up pretty soon after I like, invaded your house." She tried to chuckle. Tried to make it funny. But it really wasn't, it was painful. The stern look on Fezco's face didn't make her feel any better, and she shushed herself, trying to find a better way to explain herself.

"I misread the situation. With my stupid, selfish mind I misinterpreted your kindness and I... I thought you had feelings for me too, for a second there. But I was out of line." 

It was out. Her confession, up in the air, hanging over their heads. She hadn't wanted to say it, but Lexi had said it anyway. Maybe now was the right time. Her words were heavy, too heavy to bear witness to the light of day. They needed to be said in the darkness of the night, where they could easily slip away into the starry night sky and be forgotten the next morning. 

Fez huffed. "Fuck, Lexi."

Perhaps he had not wanted to know about her feelings, but Lexi knew it was better this way. This way Fez could slowly push her away, kindly, gently, knowing that they weren't supposed to be together, knowing that he wasn't looking for the same things she was. 

She stayed silent, giving him time to rethink all the moments he regrets his kindness, he regrets his friendship, he regrets his honesty with her. She knew he did. She knew he had to be disgusted. He couldn't even look at her.

"I thought you was just drunk..." Fezco then spoke up. His words lingered in the air, and for a moment, Lexi thought Fez would've liked to have a jumpseat to shoot him straight out of the car. He looked like absolute death. "Thought I was just, takin' advantage of you, fuck." He cussed again. 

Lexi shook her head. "If any one of us took advantage of the other, it was me. I've like, wanted to kiss you for months." She bit her lip, knowing her head was flushed red. Fezco had kept his eyes on the road, but now turned towards her.

"Nah, 'cause, shit, Lex. I wanted it too!" Fezco yelled. His hands clasped onto the wheel more tightly, "You really fuckin' thought you misread the situation? I fuckin' misread the situation. Hell nah, Lex, I was thinkin' I was the one with feelings while you were just drunk. Scared me to death when I thought of that right after kissing you," Fez was promptly blurting out.

She rapidly felt her heartbeat increase as she let the words rush through her. The entire day had been a bit too much for her. It was messing with her mind. Things weren't making sense to her anymore. And seeing Fez yell the way he did just then, was the last straw. She felt hot tears running down her face.

Did he just say he, Fez, had feelings for her, Lexi? She wondered if this was some sick dream, playing on her twisted fantasies. First, Fez shows up to be her knight in shining armor, saving her from some perverted weirdo, and then, he suddenly confesses his feelings for her? It sounded too much like some cliché, corny fanfiction she read at the age of 12. 

"Are you... Are you serious?" She sniffed. 

"Lex, are you cryin'? 'M sorry if I said something wrong, I really didn't mean to..." He trailed off, and looked at her again. He looked worried. "No, it's not-- It's not you, it's just, like, everything. I'm tired." She tried to assure him. 

"Hmm," He mumbled, "We almost at your house." 

Lexi leaned her head onto the window. She really wanted to talk with Fez, like, really ask him what it was he wanted. She wanted to know where'd they go from here. If he truly had feelings for her too, then what? 

"But I do want to say I really was serious, ma. I care 'bout you, as more than just a friend. Like, Lexi, you mad smart and shit. And you pretty, like crazy. You always wearin' cute clothes, lookin' good, bein' funny as hell. How could I not fall in love with that?"

It felt like there were actual butterflies inside her stomach. Like, if a doctor were to cut her open and they were to fly out, she would not be surprised. It felt like they were just fluttering around everywhere, sending weird sensations all over her body. It was insane how just his words could do that to her. 

She was pulled out of her thoughts by the sight of her own driveway, and she wondered how she'd gone without Fez for the past couple of days. Just knowing that she'd leave off to be alone in her own bed in a few minutes, made her miss him already. 

They both got out of the car when he pulled up to the house. Fez got her bike out of his trunk, and walked with her to her front porch, were Lexi put her bike down. "Fez, I-- I wanna talk to you about this. I thought I'd lost you after Wednesday night, I don't want to lose you, I love you," She whispers, and is scared by her own words. 

She knows that love is a big word, she can feel it in her chest, but she does actually feel like over the past few months, she's truly fallen in love with him. It started out as a crush one day when they were sitting on some old couch, but then she fell in love with him sometime later, while sitting on another old couch. 

Fez put his arms around her, pulling her into an embrace. Lexi buried her head into his chest, allowing herself to close her eyes for a second and rest in his arms. A warm, intense feeling filled Lexi. She realized that was the feeling she'd been looking for all her life.

Chapter Text

She woke up in her bed that next morning feeling happier than she'd felt in a long time. She finally understood the obsession; why everyone was always longing to be with someone. If this is what being with Nate felt like to Cassie, could Lexi really blame her? 

Yes. Lexi shut her eyes again, thinking about how crazy Nate had been. She couldn't imagine how anyone who'd done such things could possibly give her a feeling like the one she found late last night in Fez's arms.

She knew Fezco had done bad things in his life, she knew he was on the wrong side of the law, at least most of the time. But what Nate had done was different. The things he did weren't necessary evils, they weren't things he needed to do to simply survive. He did those things because he got off on it. 

She wondered how Cassie was doing. She knew her sister was waitressing at some café or restaurant, but she must've made friends there, have people to do things with. 

If Lexi had to keep waitressing for the rest of the year, she'd actually rather die. The salary was okay, it was minimum wage but with every night she worked, she managed to get more and higher tips. 

She hadn't made that much the night before, mainly because she paid for Ashtray and Fezco's dinner, but also because she'd been in the kitchen a lot more than the other nights. That was because of the incident with the creep, which she didn't want to think about too much. It was scaring her away from taking on another shift, even though she knew she had to. She really needed the money.

For today, however, she decided that she would get her mind on something else. It wouldn't get her in too much trouble, she still could manage to get the money within the next month if things went okay. 

If she really caught good tips, she'd have the money in maybe two weeks. It wasn't something she particularly had to worry about, although it would probably be a struggle with her and Fez now being on better terms. 

She'd have to work every day after school, even on the weekends, when all she really wanted was to be with Fez. But perhaps this was good. If she'd be there with him every day, she was certain he'd get sick of her too soon. 

When Fezco was behind bars, they saw and spoke to each other twice a week. Once on the phone, once during visiting hours. What if that was the only way he could like her? 

She tried to push the thoughts out of her head by grabbing her bag and walking out of her room. Her mother was on the couch, as she often was, still not doing well. Lexi had tried to convince her to go see a doctor, but Suze profoundly refused. 

It was probably just the flu, her mom had told her. So, Lexi tried to take care of her while also trying not to get sick herself. She gave her food every once in a while, and made her some tea whenever she had the time.

"Bye mom, I'm heading to school," Lexi said before she went out the door. She quickly got onto her bike, and made her way to East Highland High. She was far too excited for school to be over already, as Fez had asked her to come over.

She got by her classes, and was a bit stunned to be confronted with how much she was actually already running behind on material, for a lot of them.

She'd only really missed two-and-a-half days of school the week before, and even though that was literally 50% of her schoolweek, she thought she would be fine.

But with the added load of waitressing shifts she had been taking on, it was actually a bit too much. As of right now, she couldn't really help it, though.

If she didn't manage to make the money, she wouldn't even have school work to catch up on in a bit. So her little side job still stood higher up on her priority list.

And although she wasn't sure where Fezco belonged on that list, she was damn near sure that seeing him that afternoon was necessary.  For her own well-being.

So when the time came around, Lexi walked out of the school building towards the car she'd spotted rolling up with Fez behind the wheel. He parked it somewhere so she could get inside the vehicle. 

"Hi," She spoke, immediately all flustered as she sat herself down in the passenger seat. "Hey Lexi," Fez greeted her back, with a soft voice that got her stomach in a knot.

"You have a good day? School went alright?" He then asked her, glancing over at her while starting the car up and driving off the school grounds. "Yeah, yeah. It wasn't bad," She responded. "How was your day? Up to anything?" Lexi now questioned him.

His index finger tapped the wheel, before he answered, "Yeah, no, just at the gas station for a bit. Not a lot of customers though, was quiet."

Lexi wanted to ask him whether or not he was still dealing, but she made herself shut up before she could. She assumed he'd quit after getting out of prison, however, she wouldn't know how he'd get by if he wasn't dealing. The gas station definitely didn't get him even a quarter of what he earned before prison.  

"You seen Rue at school?" She heard Fez ask her. She thought about it for a second. She hadn't seen Rue at school. To be fair, it wasn't that strange. She hadn't seen Jules either, so they were probably skipping out on class together. 

But thinking back to Laurie telling her about the $900 debt that Rue had yet to pay, got her a little bit nervous. What if she was doing drugs again? What if Laurie had changed her mind and decided to go ahead with kidnapping Rue? 

Lexi didn't know what to think of it anymore. She shook her head. "But I didn't see Jules either, so I guess they're out somewhere together." 

She looked at her nails, she hadn't done them in a while. They weren't filed down as she liked them to be, but they were all different in lengths, and shape, and she hated it. 

"Hmm," Fez murmured, "You seen Ash?" 

She hadn't. Hadn't even thought of him. But how weird would it have been to run into him in school? It was truly something she couldn't imagine. "No, didn't see him. But it's crazy I can just run into him any day here now, damn."

"Well, he was kinda nervous yesterday about going to school. Guess he's afraid everyone gonna find him weird or something. I told him he could just sit wit'chu during lunch time if he didn't make any friends, so I hope he do be havin' some friends now, if he didn't come to you," Fez told her. 

She really hoped he indeed had made some friends, but could imagine it being difficult dropping in a few weeks after the start of the year. 

"Yo, you mind if I put on some music?" He requested. Lexi shook her head, "No, go ahead!"

The rest of the drive was spent listening to 2Pac, and Dr. Dre. It wasn't exactly Lexi's kind of music, but she really didn't hate it. Fez pressed her to put something she liked on, but actually, she just wanted to hear what Fez listened to. 

"I like this one," She'd said when she heard a song she recognized from being on one of her own playlists. "Yeah, 's a good song. S' called Changes."  Fez had replied. 

Shortly after that, Fez had parked the car right by his house and they got out of the car to enter the home. "I'm still not over what y'all did to this place. Like, 's even better than before the whole raid." Fez mumbled, as she stood in the doorway. 

"Well, we thought it was important you came back from prison to a nice place." Lexi wobbled. 

"Anything's a nice place when you get back from prison," Fez chuckled. Lexi sighed. "But we wanted you to come back to a place that was like nice nice. I don't know, just, y'know, something better," She tried to explain. 

Lexi wasn't sure why Fez even liked it that much. Yes, they had cleaned the house and upgraded some rooms with some new cushions or pictures, but that was about it. They hadn't turned it into a villa or something. 

"I appreciate it, really." Fez glistened. "You wanna have a drink? Io'n know what I got, but we can always make a run to the gas station." He asked her now, opening up his fridge. 

"Um-- I'll just have some water, thanks." Lexi went over to the tap, and looked through the cabinets to find a glass. "It's this one," Fez opened the right cabinet door, and grabbed a glass for her. He handed it over, and their fingers shortly brushed against each others'. 

"Thanks," She said, her breath hitching at the quick touch. "'Course, shorty." He smiled at her, and Lexi melted at the sight. Why did this happen every single time?

Lexi bit her lip as she questioned whether this was the right moment to ask him about his business. She stood there with the glass raised to her lips, nipping the water as if it were some fancy cocktail. Fez took a bottle of Dr. Pepper out of the fridge and poured himself a glass, too. 

"Fez, I don't mean to like, interfere, or something, but-- Can I ask you a question?" She finally managed to bring out. 

Fez stared at her for a second, eyes wide, bewildered at her question. Lexi felt like she'd said something wrong, so she opened her mouth to tell him to forget about it, but he beat her to it. "Of course. Lex, you don't gotta ask me if you can ask me a question. For real, ask away," He declared.

Lexi felt relief gush through her, and nodded. A small smile formed on her lips, but then disappeared again as she asked him the question. 

"It's just, I was wondering if you still dealt. It's not that I would like blame you, or anything, I understand why you have to do that stuff to survive, but like, it's none of my business, either, so, I get it if--" Lexi had started rambling, unsure of how to make her curiosity seem valid, but Fezco cut her off. 

"Yo, Lexi, it's fine. You deserve to know." He says. "Look, I'm not selling at the moment 'cause I just got out and it's risky. But I still got some batches layin' around, and I plan to sell those in a bit from now. After that, I wanna be done wit' it, get my GED or some shit, find another path in life. Currently livin' on Ash's crypto profits and gas station money, but I ain't sure how long that's gonna last me though." Fezco then answered her question, more extensively than she could've hoped for. 

Lexi put her glass down on the kitchen counter, looking at him intensely. "That's good, great, even. I'm really happy for you making that decision, Fez. I can't imagine it being easy, getting out of the game and all." She cheered him on. 

"Nah, I think they don't really wanna do anymore dealin' with me anyway. Got out of a prison sentence, they prolly thinkin' I be wearin' a wire." He laughed, and so did Lexi. 

"I mean, they check for wires anyway right? So they'd know you're solid, 'cause you wouldn't be wearing one." Lexi said it, then felt herself tense up at the rehearsal of her words inside her head. She quickly tried to relax herself again, hoping Fez hadn't noticed her sudden change of behavior.

She thought about her last visit to Laurie. They'd checked her for wires. The mark on her jaw that was left to remind her of it still hadn't fully disappeared.

But Fez didn't seem to read into her statement that much. "Yeah, but, I don't think they finna trust me even if they find nothin'. Like, they ain't takin' the risk. I went back once to hand over the money I owed them from the batch I sold before the raid went down and the ones I still have to sell, they checked my phone n' all. Didn't find nothin', of course, but also didn't wanna talk business. They could'a just killed me, but I guess they figure if I work for cops now that wouldn't look too good on 'em either."

He kind of looked uneasy, saying that last part out loud. Lexi felt her stomach drop just thinking about the possibility of Fez being killed. No, that couldn't happen.

"But y'know, they not doing that. I'm pretty sure they scared as fuck to be caught for shit, they always super fuckin' firm wit' checkin' on wires and shit. And besides, I'm always careful, y'know," He tried to reassure her, giving her a compassionate look.

"I know," Lexi murmured, "Just don't want to lose you."

Fez walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. His other hand went up to her face, where he tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I ain't wanna lose you either, believe me." 

He pulled her closer, his hand now on the small of her back, pulled her into an embrace. Lexi shifted her head into the crook of his neck, resting it there for a moment with her eyes closed.

When they pulled away again just slightly, they looked each other in the eyes, like they had done almost a week ago on his couch, where it all went to shit right after. Lexi hoped for something better, this time. It felt like he was a magnet, and she was a nickel, being pulled towards him more and more the closer they got. But Lexi stood firmly on her feet. She did not want to make the same mistake as last time, go too fast, get too carried away into her own doing. So she just stared him in the eyes until she heard a sound escape his lips.

"It okay if I..?" Fez trailed off, and Lexi nodded.

It was like a car crash, but without the blood and the gore and the pain and the wreckage. There were sparks flying around, and fire that ignited, and it was exquisitely chaotic, and Lexi felt her heart beating out of her chest. Her head was dizzy, their bodies tangled up, their tongues finding their ways around each other, the wetness unable to stop the raging heat from weakening her legs. 

Sensing how unsteady she was on her feet, their mouths detached for a moment, and Fez picked her up in one smooth motion and put her on the kitchen counter, seating her right next to the sink. His hand cupped her face, as they both tried to catch their breaths. 

Lexi's arms were tangled around his neck when their lips saluted each other once more, and Fez's hands were scouring over the fabric of her shirt until they weren't, as they deepened their kiss and they slipped under. Lexi's breath hitched at the warmth of his touch, and they disconnected for a second as Fez asked her if she was okay with it. 

"Go on, please," She murmured, and she pressed her lips back on his, but Fezco separated them again. "Tell me if I'm doing something you ain't good with," He huffed, before closing the distance between their faces again. 

Lexi felt his nose brush hers, a small giggle escaping her lips while they were connected with Fez's. If it wasn't for the fact that this was depriving her of oxygen, she could be doing this forever. She wanted to be like this, always. His hands on her spine, on her ribcage, nearing her bralette, sending her further into a headspin than she could possibly have imagined. 

His mouth slipped from hers, and they slid over her face, down to her neck, making her gasp in ecstasy. His hand was now on the lacy underband of her bra, respecting it as a border that he was yet to cross and resting it there. His hands didn't need to go any further than that,  it was enough for her to be thrown into a state of complete euphoria.

It took everything inside of her to conquer the desire to just keep going, on and on and on, till they were forever joined together. But Lexi needed to be able to breathe, she needed to have some water, extinguish the flames inside of her. 

When she finally managed to pull herself away a bit again, she tilted her head slightly and shot Fez a grateful smile. "I really love you," She whispered. Before she was able to overanalyze her words and scold herself for being so direct, Fez had already said it back. 

Lexi giggled when he said it. "Thank you," She found herself saying. At which Fez grinned. "You ain't gonna go thank me for being in love wit' you, forreal Lex. That's some bullshit, 'cause we both know who really better be thankful. This some Shrek and Fiona typa love, and that's why I should thank you for bein' able to somehow love me, Fiona."

Lexi jokingly pushed him away from her, putting her hands upon his chest. "No, no!" She chuckled, "Don't say that! God, no. You're like, super, attractive." She felt herself blush, and quickly let her gaze drop.

"I ain't sayin' Shrek isn't, I'm just sayin', you like a hundred times more attractive." Fez now howled, and he brought his hand up to her face to guide her eyes back to his. "We shoulda be watching it, actually. S' a good movie," He suggested.

Lexi nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, yes, we totally should," She grabbed her glass of water and took a sip, finally able to breathe normally again. 

And so, they ended up watching a movie on the couch again. During the movie, Fez had asked her if it was okay if he smoked, and he'd lit a blunt, also offering her. Lexi had turned the offer down, remembering the last time she smoked, also on that same couch. 

The memory wasn't entirely bad, but Lexi just hadn't felt that good being high. And although she'd always blamed it on the loss of control she didn't like, she did like the feeling that being tipsy, on the edge of drunk gave her. 

Maybe things had changed for her, and she wanted to find out, but not right here, not right now, still riding out the high of their kiss earlier. 

It was without hesitation that he asked her to stay over for dinner, and this was an offer Lexi couldn't refuse. At home, she'd be having dinner by herself, as her mother was too sick to keep meals inside her body and didn't bother to eat those anymore, until she'd be better.

"You have any preference, like, what'chu wanna eat? Things you don't like?" He asked her. "Hmm," She thought to herself, "I don't really have many things I don't eat. No allergies either, I'm down with anything you feel up for," She answered his question. 

"'Kay, then I'mma bake some pancakes, 'cause that's what I'm up for," He spoke. Lexi smirked, "Argh, yes. Let me help you." 

"Sure, shorty," Fez smirked back at her. And so, they crack eggs, pour milk, and have a small flour fight.

"Fez! You got it all in my hair!" Lexi whines. He simply laughs, as she tries to  get the flour out of it by running her hand through it and roughly shaking her head.

She grabbed a pinch of flour and threw it right back at him. "Girl, you really think I'm afraid of some white powder? That shit used to make me money," He laughed, yet he still backed away as Lexi continued her attack.

"You want me to crack a fuckin' egg on yo head? 'Cause if you continue, oh, I definitely be willin' to do that," He threatened her, and Lexi put the flour away raising her hands in an acknowledgment of her surrender. He walked forward and placed a kiss on her head. "Good girl," He murmured, and Lexi tried to hide how much those words turned her on.

They continued baking pancakes for a little more time, and when they finally had a small stack of them, they both sat down at the kitchen table. "You like pancakes a lot, huh? Last time you were also craving IHOP," Lexi reminded him as they both took a pancake up on their plate.

"Yeah, I used to bake pancakes for Ash all the time too." He shrugged. "What about you come over tomorrow an' I make an actual dinner? Like a real nice, fancy something?" He then asked.

Lexi wanted to say yes-- But she knew in her heart too that she really needed money right know, so she needed to turn up to work again. She felt bad about it though, like she owed it to him to show up and be with him.

"Fez, I find this an actual dinner, believe me. I think pancakes are super fancy," She replied, and saw him roll his eyes. "I can't do tomorrow, I'm so sorry, I have to work," She really hoped he wouldn't ask if she could do Wednesday then instead, or Thursday, or Friday.

"Oh, yeah, of course. What about Wednesday then? Or Thursday?" He crushed her hopes. Of course he did.

She swallowed. "Um-- I have to work too. I mean like, pretty much all of the next week," She said, and she could tell he felt hurt. He was probably thinking that she was trying to get out of seeing him, and she cursed herself.

She quickly tried to think of a lie that could make it make sense. "It's only for like, the next two weeks though. My mom's been sick, so she hasn't been able to work for over a week now. I need to work after school so we can keep up with rent," It was only half a lie. Her mom hadn't gone to work in over a week, but Lexi had hoped they still had enough of a buffer to pay for this months' rent.

"Oh," Fez brought out, "That sucks. She gonna be okay though, yo mom?" He asked. Lexi nodded, "It's probably just the flu, nothing too serious."

"Wish I could help. I'd still have 'nough emergency funds left for that if it weren't for Rue always makin' debts with me," He shrugged.

Lexi shook her head, "It's fine," She reassured him. But then she thought of Rue. "Rue still hasn't paid you back for all the drugs she took from you?" She pried.

"Nah," Fez acknowledged, "But that ain't really the issue. Rue got herself into a bit of a situation right before I went to prison, an' she asked me for help. 'T was a real bad situation, so I couldn't just... Not do anything. But I had legal expenses to cover as well, so shit, my funds just flew straight out. Don't think she's gonna get me back that 8000 bucks anytime soon," He explained.

It made sense to Lexi right there and then, but she couldn't let him know. Laurie had told her Rue had a big debt she needed to pay off earlier that year, which against Laurie's expectations, she had. But now she realized she got the funds for that from Fez.

"Like, some shit went down where I got into real money trouble for a sec last year. So I decided to save, like, a lot of our profits and put it into some emergency fund. Finally felt secure, then that raid happen, and then to top it off the whole thing with Rue. So much for tryin' to budget my way through life," He sighed. Lexi could tell it really had hurt him, it must have. Putting so much work into something to have it all ripped away from you? 

"God, Fez, I'm so sorry. That sucks so much, life really isn't fair." She tried to somehow console him. Whatever words she said inside of her head, it just didn't sound right. She felt bad for him, she felt upset with Rue. Wreaking havoc on her path, even if she doesn't mean to. It was the addiction, Lexi knew, but that didn't make the pain any less.

"Let me pick you up though," She suddenly heard Fez, and got confused for a second. "What?" She asked, giving him a questioning look. "From wherever you need'a work. 'S late at night, Ion' like you riding your bike in the dark here," He elaborated, pulling Lexi back to their original conversation.

"Oh, yeah, sure. That'd be, um-- Nice." She stammered. Fez grinned at her again. "Also, Lex. Don't get yourself all overworked, I mean, 'course, I understand you needa pay rent and all, but you looked like death yesterday." He said. Lexi sighed. "I won't," It was an empty promise, she knew.

"An' if a man like that show up again, like the creep yesterday, call me. Im'ma have to pull another stunt like I did with Nate Jacobs at the New Years' Eve party." He laughed, yet he had a serious look on his face.

"I don't want you back in prison, I'll just call the cops next time there's a pervert being like that, alright?" She tried to compromise. "Hmm," He murmured, "I'd rather beat his ass," He drawled, at which Lexi laughed again.

"I'll do the dishes," Lexi got up and grabbed their plates, putting them down into the sink and beginning to clean them. "I'll help," She heard Fez say from beside her. So there they stood, right by each others' side, Lexi washing, Fez drying, perfectly in sync.

When they were done, Lexi took a long look at the time and made a decision. "I guess I should go home, see if my mom's fine, work on school for a bit," She tried to not look too upset about it, but she really was. 

"Yeah, sure. Let's go," He said casually. He, too, was upset, but didn't quite let it on. He wanted her to have her own life, to be able to go and do what she pleased. He wasn't going to hold her back. So  while the car stood parked in front of the Howard home, Lexi was leaning over the gear shift, her arms tangled around Fez's neck, and their lips met once more, long and hard.

Chapter Text

Lexi was ecstatic about what had happened that Monday. 

And by the time the next day had come around, there had to be a garden inside of her stomach. Every time she thought of him she felt the flowers inside her grow towards the vision that paraded behind her eyelids.

The flowers crawled up, past her ribcage, brushing by her heart and giving it another reason to beat. Some flowers creeped up through her throat, dizzying her in an instant.

He was the shine of the sun, the light himself, tugging her towards him by simply existing.

It was nauseating, the flowers. The love she felt. The way she cringed at the ways she thought of him, corny fantasies that triumphed even the most cliché romance novels.

But Lexi's life was good. She saw the one obstacle she had to pass getting closer and closer, and she was now certain she could take the leap, jump right over the hurdle. It was then that she could calm down, catch her breath, truly enjoy all that her life had come to.

She wouldn't trip, she wouldn't fall flat on her face. She whispered it to herself before her shifts, before trying to appease another dick into thinking he's funny, before seeing him stack bills and telling her to keep the change.

She whispered it to herself before telling her coworkers she wasn't staying for drinks after closing, before stepping into Fez's car, hearing him ask about her night, about her day at school and her mom and Rue.

Before she slipped inside her home again, careful not to make too much noise, resting her head on her pillow and not closing her eyes before he texts her to have sweet dreams.

It was what she needed to get through these weeks, to think of all the possibilities that were lying behind the Friday three weeks from this moment. The Friday that she was set to hand Laurie the money. The Friday that everything would be okay again. 

Lexi's days had been consisting of waking up, trying to keep up with her assignments at school, working 7-hour shifts after her last class, stepping into Fez's car, and letting him drive her crazy. It had become a routine, and a good one.

The only deviation from her routine had really been doing groceries for once. It was usually her mom taking care of it, aside from asking her to them for her or running to get small errands occasionally, but her mom was still sick. Although she was slowly starting to get better, it seemed. 

It was Friday now, and Lexi sat in her last class, eagerly waiting to get out, make money, and see Fez again. The fact that it was Friday, meant good money. 

She jumped up at the ring of the bell, her notebook and pens already stuffed back into her backpack, hurling it around her arm as she made a run for the door.

"Yo, Lex. You onto some Usain Bolt shit right now? I've never seen Lexi Howard so desperate to get out of class," She heard Rue sniff behind her.

Lexi turned to her, "Hi, Rue."

They hadn't spoken to each other in a week. Lexi had been too much in her own little world, while Rue had found herself spending more and more time walking the school halls with Jules.

"Well, c'mon, tell me Lex! Where are you going that's got you so excited?" She impatiently pressed her. It had shot through Lexi's mind briefly in the past week, the thought of Rue knowing about her and Fez.

But whatever it was they had, it was still in its infancy stage. They hadn't put a label on it, but Lexi felt fairly positive that she wasn't just another girl to him. She hadn't wanted to put any pressure on him by asking about it, so she just rolled with it. After all, they had exchanged their I love you's. He wouldn't say that if they weren't like, exclusive, right?

"I'm heading to work, not so super exciting," Lexi smiled at Rue, trying to think of anything but Fezco in order to undo herself of the blushy rose tint that was sure to grow brighter if she went over one more memory of the kiss they shared in his kitchen just five days earlier.

"Really? Wait, where? Wasn't it some café?" Rue scratched her head.

"Yeah, no, I worked at a café, but tonight it's going to be a restaurant. I work through a platform, a bit like Uber, I just get offers for one-time gigs and can accept them when I'm up for it," Lexi explains.

"Hmm," Rue mumbles, "That sounds cool. You trying to find money to buy more books?"

Lexi shakes her head. "Well, not really. I'm just-- I'm saving for college, y'know? It's really expensive," She stammers, quickly realizing that that wasn't the lie she was supposed to be using.

She was meant to use her mom being sick as an excuse. It was bad, Lexi knew. But, now she's here talking about using the money for college? That was weird, as it wouldn't make sense for Lexi to quit again in two weeks time. But she shook it off. She'd just say she didn't like the work.

"Ooh, yeah, that makes sense," Rue said, "You always got your stuff in order, school, finances, I wish I could."

Lexi sighed. "You know, Rue, it probably just sounds a lot better than reality. I'm lagging behind on assignments, and my finances, well.. If only you knew." She laughed carelessly, knowing there was a lot more behind her statement than her friend could ever possibly grasp.

"I want to say you can always come for me for help, but I know I actually wouldn't be of that much help. On that same note, I actually wanted to ask you to help me out on the English assignment, if you're up for it," Rue spoke. Lexi thought she heard a nervous undertone in her friend's voice, but chose to ignore it. 

"Sure! Just, I'm kind of busy with work, but I can probably do sometime next week, or, I don't know, sometime after my evening shift, but that would get late," She couldn't hide her enthusiasm. As Rue opened her mouth to say something else, a girl with pale white long locks of hair flung around her shoulder. "Rue! Here you are," Jules exclaimed. 

Before Rue could say anything else to Lexi or Jules, Lexi found herself waving, "Well, uh-- I really have to go, work," She stuttered. She was still kind of uncomfortable with the idea of Rue and Jules, after having seen how the relationship had ruined Rue in the past.

She turned around and heard Rue, "Yeah, uh, text me when you're up to work with me for English!" 

She would, but not today. Lexi wasn't sure where to even find the time to work with Rue. She could probably take another day off next week, just not during the weekend or on a Friday. 

Lexi took her bike and decided to go home first, to get a shot of vodka inside of her. She wasn't particularly nervous for her shift that evening, but it was just that things were easier when she wasn't so much.. Herself. 

Her mom was still hanging around on the couch, but she was getting better, and probably would be going back to work the next week. "Lexi, sweetie, how was your day?" She murmured when Lexi stepped foot inside the home. 

"All good, mom. Just heading out to hang with Rue in a bit," She lied. There were a lot of lies, lately. Lexi wasn't all that great with keeping up with them, so she preferred not to. But in two weeks, here lies would have to vanish. She would be back to being an open book.

It wasn't like Lexi had to lie, all of the times that she did lie. She just found that things were easier when she did lie. If she told her mom about the work she was currently doing, her mom would go on to ask questions.

What kind of work? Where? Why? 

And Lexi could think of other lies then, like she told Rue she had to work for college, but then in two weeks, when she had no more debt to pay, Lexi would have to keep that lie up. Or she'd have to say she hated it, so she quit. But then she was just stacking up lie onto lie, and Lexi didn't like the idea of that.

"That's great. You'll have to bring her around again sometime, I'd love to see her again. But not when I'm sick like this, you better do it sometime else," Her mom stated.

Of course, Lexi wasn't about to bring Rue over today. But would it really have mattered if she did? It wasn't like Rue hadn't seen her mom completely wasted, looking a lot worse than she did now. 

But Lexi nodded, and took her shot of vodka in the kitchen where her mom could not see.

She slipped into her room and put on some make-up, as she found that it helped her with getting tips. A red lipstick, some mascara. It was simple, but did wonders for her wallet.

And then she was off again, to a restaurant she'd worked at before in the previous week. That definitely calmed her nerves a bit, knowing what the place looked like and what some of its people were like. 

It was a bit of a slow night. People complained a lot about their food, yet there was no real drama. Lexi tried to sympathize with those complaining, trying to win over their hearts. Sometimes it worked, sometimes  it didn't. 

She managed to get a fair amount of money in tips, and at the end of the night she was satisfied with the stack of cash she could find in her purse. When she saw Fez pull up from inside the restaurant, still in conversation with one of her coworkers after they'd finished cleaning and Lexi had changed back into her own shirt, she quickly cut the dialogue off and said her goodbyes.

She swiftly hops into the car after Fez places her bike into the back of his truck. Lexi tapped her finger onto the dashboard, as Fez sat down next to her. "All good, shorty?" 

Lexi bobbed her head up and down. "Yeah," She uttered, "And my mom's doing better, I think she can go back to work soon enough. You won't have to pick me up every night anymore in a week, maybe two." 

She couldn't really face it, couldn't really own up to it, but sometimes, Lexi felt a bit like a burden sitting in his car at night. He must have better things to do, yet he comes there every night when she texts him a time, always spot on, never asking her to wait or to just ride her bike. 

"It's great that your mom's doin' better. But, y'know, I'mma still be pickin' you up, whether that's from work or from someplace else. I like this. You, sittin' next to me in my car," He admitted, looking over at her. 

Lexi found it hard to not smile at his statement. "You don't mind? I mean, you've probably got like, other important stuff, right?" She asks, trying to stop her hands from tapping the dashboard. 

"Nah, you's what's important to me. Family. I don't got much else I worry about."

Lexi lays her hands down on her thighs, looking at her nails. It's too dark to really see how they look, but attempts to anyway. "Yo, you tired? Otherwise I'll take a detour. Wanted to talk to you 'bout somethin'." She hears from beside her. 

She averts her eyes to Fez. "No, I'm not tired. Let's talk." She says. Whenever someone says they want to talk, Lexi worries it's going to be something bad. Was this bad? Was this about Lexi, or about himself?

There were a range of things she could think of he'd wanted to talk about to her. The number one of those being that he'd changed his mind about his feelings for me, and wants to stay just friends. He said he liked her sitting in the car with him, but he might've said that about a friend, right?

Was there a possibility Fez found out about her issue with Laurie? She couldn't really fathom how that would have happened. She wasn't sure there was any relation between the two, at all. Laurie had, however, had connections to Rue. What if Rue had come back to Laurie? What if Laurie had told Rue? What if Rue in turn had told Fez?

She wondered how mad he'd be. She'd hidden this whole big thing, worked at his gas station and all, to make money for some drug lord. Lexi didn't think he'd like the idea of that very much. She figured he wouldn't be sitting right by her side in the car this calm. She would guess he'd not like her presence very much, at all, if he knew. 

So it couldn't be that, right?

Lexi suddenly felt very dizzy and rested her head back against the headrest, trying to focus on the visor above her to gain some stability. But she felt Fez's eyes on her, and the thought of him looking straight at her side-profile made her cringe. 

"You sure? You okay?" She heard him speak, the tinge of worry not going by Lexi unnoticed. 

"Yeah, um, is it okay if I roll a window down? Just want some fresh air," She replied, still staring at the visor. 

She suddenly felt the car come to a halt on the side of the road. "I have a better idea, let's get out," Fez said, opening his door. Lexi tore her eyes off the visor and looked around, to see a playground right by their car. It was dimly lit. She saw a green slide, a swing. 

Lexi got out of the car, trying to forget about all the possible things Fez could be wanting to talk to her about. She looked up, thousands of little stars illuminating the sky. She was reminded of how insanely big the universe really was, and how little her worries were part of them. 

Everything that happened around her meant nothing in the grand scheme of things. 

"'S pretty," Fez said, and he motioned towards the sky as Lexi looked back at him. "Yeah, it really is."

They stood there just looking at the stars for a second, until Fez eventually made his way to the swing and sat down on one of the two seats that hung from the frame. Lexi made her way there after him and sat down on the swing seat next to him. 

"What did you want to talk about?" She blurted out. She was getting nervous thinking about it, so she needed him to relieve her. She'd ruled out the topics that she already worried about herself, so that meant she had to be worried about it being something else. Something else to worry about.

Fez's eyes looked soft in the faint light of the playground. He glances over at her before scraping his throat and opening his mouth. "Well, 's just, Rue an' I hung out a couple days ago. Like, I think it was Tuesday. We went to see Faye, an' like, after that, Rue told me something." 

He looked at the ground for a few seconds before continuing. In those few seconds, Lexi felt herself die and come back to life thinking about what the hell Rue could have told Fez. Maybe she was right, and Rue had heard from Laurie about Lexi, and told Fez. Maybe keeping him out of it wasn't a good idea after all, but would only come back to bite her.

No. It was a good idea, because she didn't need Fez to be pulled into her mess. He's got enough to worry about as it is. 

"Or like, she didn't really tell me nothin'. She just asked, first. Like, she jus' ask me for a bunch of money, like I ain't help her earlier this year. I even told her back then it was the only time I was goin' to get her out of a situation like that." He finally added. He sounded slightly pissed off, like the memory of it just made him go bitter.

"Oh," Was all Lexi could bring out. Of course Rue was looking for money, she needed to pay Laurie $900. Or actually, she didn't exactly need to. Because Lexi was paying for it. Or was Laurie making the both of them pay? Getting double the money? She wasn't sure. If Rue had in fact spoken to Laurie, then maybe it was better for her to think she still had a debt. 

At least that meant she didn't know about Lexi also having a debt. But what if it meant that Laurie was still planning on selling Rue off somewhere? If she was still asking Rue for the money, it could also be because she just doesn't expect Lexi to come up with the money. Maybe that thought frightened her most, because it made her unsure of her position in Laurie's book.

Rue's debt gave Lexi a deal, a reason to extend her deadline. But if that debt was gone, did it mean the deal was gone, too? 

"The thing is, Ion' even know what it's for. Ion' think it's drugs, 'cause she'd probably have needed more money if she was still doin' like pills and stuff like she did back then. It wasn't that much money, but I still turned her down. Said she needed to be more like you, take care of her shit, get a job or something. But now Ion' know what to do, 'cause like, these people don't play around."

He scoffed. Lexi could tell it upset him a lot, the way Rue always got herself back into trouble, always reckless about the things she got herself into. And it was something they connected over, something they both felt deeply affected by. 

Lexi turned her gaze away from him, and in her peripheral, she saw him light a blunt. She never really liked anything about people smoking, whether that were cigarettes or something else, but on Fez it looked so good. It distracted her for a moment, which is why it took a little bit of time before she actually responded to what he'd said.

"But if you don't think it's drugs, what else could it possibly be for?" She heard herself ask.

It was something she'd been wondering about for a while. Why would Rue have a 900$ debt? It wasn't like, part of a debt. It was the complete debt. Maybe she'd just gotten a small batch of something, that was what Laurie made it seem. Maybe she'd had a relapse over the summer when she was gone, but quickly fixed herself up again before people could notice.

"Shit, if I knew," Fez answered her. 

"I think you were right, when you turned her down. Maybe she should explore other options to find money, I'm not saying that's easy, but she has to get a sense of responsibility. Otherwise, she'll just keep coming to you for money." Lexi tries to put Fez at ease by telling him her vision upon the issue. 

The reality was, she didn't think Rue would be getting the money. Rue wasn't one to go out and get a job, even if it sounded harsh. And Lexi didn't think that Rue was lazy, or anything like that, at all. She just didn't think Rue was in the right headspace to be focusing on a job right now. So in all honesty, the words that just came out of her mouth didn't really sit well with her. 

"When does she need the money?" Lexi asked, to forget about what she'd just said.

"I'on know, it's like, she didn't have a deadline. Or she passed it already, I think that's what she said. Been months. But the fact that she passed it and hasn't heard from 'em is actually crazy, those folks crazy." He muttered. 

In that case, Rue would probably be better off sitting this one out. She didn't really want Rue to interfere with her deal. Obviously her friend doesn't know about the deal, and Lexi isn't really planning on telling her. Even if that's kind of a shitty thing for her to do. Leaving her friend worried sick about her own safety.

She wanted to think it was what Rue needed, but no, no one needs to be worried sick every day whether or not they will still be around the next day. 

"Hmm, if it's been months, maybe they forgot," Lexi dumbly said. She knew they hadn't, but what if they had? What if Rue just thought they had? 

"Nah, Lex. These people ain't like that. They ain't forget, and they ain't just gonna let that shit go. It's mad weird that it's been months," Fez replied, not an ounce of judgment in his voice, nothing to suggest he thought it was a dumb comment.

"Yeah, dumb question. Oh, well." She laughed at herself.

"'S not a dumb question. You ain't been around these people, you don't know how crazy they get. This lady an' her man, they a scary ass couple," He retorted. She felt her throat clench up at his statement, the irony of it.

"So, you deal with them a lot?" Lexi heard herself ask him. She'd actually needed to know, if he was the link between Rue and Laurie. It had seemed logical to her at first, but then it crossed her mind that perhaps Rue had just stumbled upon another dealer in another way. 

"Yeah, we did business before." His answer is short but direct. Lexi doesn't need to know more. She nods. 

"How much is Rue down for?" She inquired.

Fez looked over at her in silence for a second. He then averted his eyes to the blunt in his hands. He lifted his blunt up to his lips, took a hit, and then blew the smoke out. 

"You ain't gotta know, Lex. I know you always out takin' care of shit, helpin' other people, but this not your business to take care of," He said it in the most thoughtful, kind way possible. And it almost didn't hurt her feelings. 

But it did, because Lexi knew that what he told her not to do, was exactly what she was doing already. She didn't really know what to say about it. She wanted to tell him about everything, the entire story, from the day she saw her dad riding her bike home from the gas station to right where she was sitting on the swing. But she couldn't do it. It was stupid, anyway, if she just said it now, after everything they discussed. It was too late.

Lexi stepped of the swing seat and grabbed the two ropes it hung from. She stepped back a little, then hopped back onto the seat with a little bit of force. It got the swing moving. Trying to get farther up into the air, she swung her legs into the direction she was going in. It was fun, and she felt free for a bit, like she could fly straight into their solar system, swallowed by stars and eccentric planets with more moons than she had books. 

She peeked over at Fez and saw him blow out some smoke. They were really just two kids getting high. Lexi chuckled as the thought crossed her mind, and she tried to slow down her movement.

She eventually came to a stop, and looked over at Fez for a little bit longer. His beard was trimmed to a perfect length. He was wearing a fun crewneck, it had stripes, circles, colors that were all kind of faded. It looked good on him. 

"Can I try?" She murmured, staring at the blunt in his hand.

Fez grinned at her. "You sure?" He questioned her.

Lexi nodded and reached out to take the joint from him. He carefully studied her face, maybe looking for some kind of confirmation that she wasn't playing, then handed it over to her.

She put it to her lips, cautious not to take too big of a drag the first time. But even if she didn't, she still coughed.

"You alright, shorty?" Fez chuckled right next to her.

Lexi took another drag before answering, now without coughing.

"Yes. You about to draw a beard onto my face? You did the first time I tried weed, with Rue. But you probably don't remember."

Fez looked surprised at her statement, but then eased his expression. "I did. I remember that. 'M sorry about it. But it was funny, Lex. Yo ass looked cute as hell with that Bob Ross kinda look."

Lexi snorted. "I dressed up as him for Halloween last year," She confessed. It was inspired by Rue and Fez.

"Shit, you did? I should have seen it," Fez spoke, as Lexi felt the drug hit her. "Hmmm," She murmured, and handed the blunt back to Fez.

"You good?" He inquired, observing how the blunt was almost down to nothing.

Lexi wanted to say yes, but realized how dry her throat suddenly had become. So when she opened her mouth, nothing came out.

Thinking that it would somehow help her, she instead let out a cough. In hindsight, it probably wasn't that great of an idea. Lexi broke out in a coughing fit.

"You need some water or something, Lex. I got some in my car, let's get back in," He stood up and stepped over to stand next to her. She felt a hand on the upper part of her arm as she stood up, still coughing.

As she got up, she felt a bit light-headed, and struggled with her orientation. But Fez's arm, now around her, grounded her again.

When they got to the car, Fez reached in to give her a small bottle of water. Lexi finally stopped coughing completely, and now felt slightly embarrassed about it. Nonetheless, she could laugh about it. As did Fez.

"You good?" He asked. Lexi nodded, then sniffed. "Let's getchu home," She heard Fez again. "I really want to be in bed," Lexi blurted out. It was true, but she just didn't expect herself to be speaking her mind like that.

"Yes, ma? Let's getchu there, c'mon." Fez pulled her into a hug shortly. He presses a kiss on top of her head. And then they step back into the car.

Chapter Text

Rain was pouring hard outside of the restaurant. Lexi had some more time to go on her shift, the restaurant was almost closing up. Most guests were asking for the bill, leaving, or eating their dessert.

She walked by one of the tables she served, the man seated there with his wife and kids gesturing for her to come over. He handed her over the little booklet which contained the bill, as well as his payment, and she walked back over to the cash register with it.

Counting the bills, she felt the man must've had to have made a mistake. His food totaled $132, but there were four bills of a hundred inside the booklet. Perhaps he'd meant to give two of fifty, and two of twenty.

Regardless, she stashed the bills into the register and took the required amount of change back out. The restaurant had no policy on not taking $100 bills, so it was no real issue. She walked back over to the table with the change.

"And here's your change!" She smiled, slightly hoping that she was at least still going to get a small tip. Honestly, there were very few occasions on which she didn't get a tip.

"Oh, you can keep it," The man shrugged nonchalantly.

Lexi stood starstruck for a moment. She opened the booklet once more to look inside, to see the amount. It was $268. "Um-- um, are you sure? It's two hundred and sixty-eight dollars." Lexi brought out. She didn't really know what to say.

It was usual for guests to tip 20, sometimes 30 or even ranging up to 50 percent of their bill, if they were being kind. This was over double the amount of their bill.

"Yeah, sure. We enjoyed the food." The man looks over at her and shoots her a smile, before looking back at his wife again and grabbing her purse. "We should head out," He tells her.

"Well, thank you. And have a good night!" She stammers, as they leave.

Lexi thinks about it for the remaining part of her shift. This had to be the most she's made, ever. She didn't know money could make her feel this happy. Even with the knowledge of it not being spent on nice things or experiences or going to her college funds, knowing that it went to Laurie didn't take away from the fact that getting money made her feel content.

Maybe this was something she'd just have to continue after she'd hand the money over to Laurie. She did need it for college, after all.

This was the first night she even made anything close to $500. She'd never had a night where she made over $300, so this was really something new.

When Fez picked her up, she didn't tell him about the tip she got right away. She was insanely tired after working all weekend, from early in the morning to after midnight. But Fez could sense something had happened, she was smiling about it from time to time, unable to hide her satisfaction.

"Yo, ma, you had a good night or something?" He asks her, his eyes pulled towards her smile. Lexi chuckles. "Someone gave me a two hundred dollar tip. I guess it was indeed a good night."

"Damn Lexi, these people really appreciate you, huh. Can't really say they're wrong for it," He drawls.

"Hmm," Lexi murmurs. "Can I put on some music?" Lexi asks. It was usually Fez's playlist playing in the car, although he'd always ask her to put something on if she wanted to. However, tonight, the car was silent.

"Sure, I been dying to know what kinda stuff you into," He admits. Lexi hesitates for a moment. "Don't judge me for the music I listen to, Fez." She shyly requests from him.

"Nah, why would I? 'S just a genuine thing I been wanting to know."

Lexi connects her phone to the speaker and scrolls through the immense amount of playlists on her Spotify. Eventually she settles on one of her favorites, although it's probably not really Fez's kind of music, she fears.

She scrolls through the playlist, looking for a good song to start on. She doesn't really know. Eventually she just presses shuffle, and lets the universe decide. That's when she hears the tone of the Neighbourhood's Softcore.

Lexi observes Fez to see whether or not he likes it, but he doesn't really give it away. "'S not bad." He eventually says, when he notices her staring at him. Lexi isn't convinced, but at least he's not laughing at her or telling her how bad the music she listens to is.

Eventually, when a song by MARINA is on, she catches Fez vibing along. "Shit, this goes hard," He mutters as he turns the volume up slightly. "I know right?" Lexi jams along to the lines. Need to purge the poison from our system until human beings listen.. "Tell me who'd you think you are," Lexi excitedly sang along.

Fez laughed. He was happy to see Lexi this happy, doing so well. He wished things could always be like that.

Some 100 gecs bangers, awfultune, Lana del Rey, Car Seat Headrest pass by. Lexi silently mouths along to the songs. I've been big and small, and big and small, and big and small-- And still nobody wants me, still nobody wants me.

"Hey! 'S not true. I want you," Fez muttered, interrupting Lexi's lip syncing.

Lexi grins. "I'd hope so," She said. But thinking about it, Lexi realized she had no right to hope so. They'd never really labeled what it was that they had. They'd only really, really, kissed a week ago. They'd made out in his car twice during that week following their kiss, but they hadn't spoken much about it.

She just assumed that they were now more or less, something exclusive.

So, she spoke. Without thinking too much on it, she posed the question. "But is it only me you want?" She had a serious tone to her voice, letting him know that she wasn't joking around.

He looked a bit shocked at her question. "'Course, ma. It's been you since.. Hell, I'on know. That party, New Years Eve? But even before that, I always thought you was Rue's cute friend," He tells her.

"You did?" Lexi gasps, and then chuckles. A warm feeling fills her stomach.

"Yeah, you always gettin' ice-cream, lookin' all cute. I might've had a little crush, maybe," He confessed.

Lexi puts her hands to her face, hiding the vibrant red color spreading on her cheeks. It was probably too dark to really see, but Lexi still felt the need to cover.

Before she knew it however, they rolled up to the Howard house. They both got out of the car, and Fez popped the trunk open to get her bike out. She took it from his hands, trying to hold it steady next to her while giving him a messy hug. Before she lets go, she gives him a quick kiss.

"Night, Lexi." He said, while she walked off to her front door. She placed the bike by her garage, hearing Fez slam his car door shut. She turns around one last time to wave him goodbye before grabbing her keys.

Except, her keys wheren't there.

She moves her hand around in her pocket, desperately trying to find the cold metal. But it's empty. So, she puts her hand into her other pocket. It holds her phone, but aside from that, nothing.

Her purse? She grabs the small cross-body bag and drags the zipper open. It's got to be somewhere, after all. But in there, she only finds her wallet, a charger, and her red lipstick. She opens up her wallet, nearing hopelessness. It holds her money, and the sound of coins clinking gives her hope for a second, but there's no key in there either.

Fez is still waiting for her to go inside. It's a safety thing, he muttered the last time she said something about him waiting for her to get inside the house before leaving.

But it was getting embarrassing now.

She pressed down on the doorbell, her last resort being her mom. But lately, her mom's been sleeping in early. So Lexi doesn't expect her to still be awake to open up the door for her.

She decides to call Fez. It's weird, but what if her mom suddenly opened the door? That would be weirder, right?

"What's going on there?" Fez speaks into the phone before she can even begin to form a sentence. "My keys," She huffs, "Are they still in the car?"

"Hmm," She hears Fez mumble. The sound of him going through the car follows. A few moments pass, and Lexi is now sure her mom is not going to be opening the door anytime soon. So she walks over to the car, to help Fez in his search.

"You sure you don't got it on you? I can't find nothin' in my car here," He opens up his door to speak to her. "Oh, God," Lexi stammered. "I don't have them on me, no, I must have lost them somewhere, fuck," She was cussing now, walking around in circles trying to think where she possibly could have last seen her keys.

"Yo, Lex. Calm down, it will turn back up, an' else you can probably just get one copied off yo mom's at one of those places," He tries to comfort her, putting his hands on her sides. Lexi looked down to the ground. "No, my mom's gonna freak. Like, she's not going to like me losing my keys to our house, 'cause like safety and all that." She was on the verge of crying.

"Then we finna go find it, okay? Yo, we'll drive by that restaurant, look around, maybe 's on the floor somewhere," He proposes. Lexi silently nods as she lets him drag her back to the car.

Their car ride back was spent mostly in silence. Lexi was slightly panicking at the thought of her mom finding out about losing her keys, especially given that she was supposed to be the smart one. Her mother would expect it from Cassie, but from her? Not so much.

She felt a few tears roll down her cheek, and internally cursed herself for it. Why was she crying about her damn keys? In front of Fez? He was probably thinking about how terribly overdramatic she was being.

At the sight of her tear-stained face, Fez puts a hand on her thigh. It sends butterflies through her spine and warms her up inside for a moment, but then he puts his hand back on the wheel again. His eyes back on the dark road.

Lexi could feel him speed up, and however much she knew it was meant well, she couldn't really like it. Maybe she was boring, or unromantic, or even ungrateful, but she felt road safety, and not her keys, was the most important thing here.

She felt herself tense up every time he hit the gas pedal, keeping her eyes focused on the speedometer. At one point Fez must have taken notice of her strange behavior, as he mumbled, "Shit, sorry, was trying to get there fast. Was bein' reckless."

He slowed down his speed, and Lexi felt herself calm down again. She nodded at his statement.

When they finally get back to the restaurant, the keys are nowhere to be found. The restaurant is closed, her coworkers are gone.

"We'll jus' see if they got it in the restaurant tomorrow, maybe they got some lost and found shit. You can stay wit' me tonight, uh, I can take the couch?" She heard Fez beside her. The last bit he mentioned enlightened Lexi-- the fact that he was so mindful of her. It was unnecessary, but nonetheless, it at least showed he was okay with taking things a bit slow.

Although Lexi wasn't entirely sure she wanted things to go slow.

She'd waited months for Fez and her to share their first kiss, even if she'd envisioned it all far before he went away behind bars and had his trial. So even though she had a brutal fear of the idea of intercourse, she still wanted it-- with Fez.

It was mainly penetration she was scared of. She couldn't even get a tampon up, so a dick would probably be out of the question. But she didn't see Fez as someone who would pressure her into doing something she didn't want to do. She figured they'd get to go that far eventually, but could ease into it by first doing other... Things. For a little while.

"I-- I don't think that's necessary. You don't have to take the couch." She simply said. Lexi swore she saw something glistening behind Fez's eyes. "I mean... Are you sure? I don't mind." He asked slowly.

"Yes." Lexi affirmed with a strong voice.

And with that settled, they drove back towards Fez's house. Lexi was tired by the time they reached their destination, so tired that she was already half asleep.

Fez had softly touched her shoulder, in an attempt to wake her up. It worked. Lexi opened her eyes, remembering where she was. She remembered why they were where they were, and how they'd gotten there.

She remembered herself stepping into Fez's car after leaving the restaurant and waving goodbye to her coworkers, she remembers dropping her keys into her pocket, putting her seatbelt on, hearing a clinking sound from in between the seat and the center console.

Without a second thought, Lexi put her hand inside the small crevice. It was a tight space, but she had small hands.

On her search for her keys, she found some other things she didn't really want to find. An old piece of gum, a small bag filled with powder. And finally, something she did want to find, all the way down with her hand squished, she felt the cold metal of her key.

She couldn't get a hold of it like that, so she put her hand in once, differently this time, and managed to pry the object out.

Fez looked at her with large eyes.

"It must have fallen in there when I put it into my pocket," She managed to say.

"Hmm. Happy you found it," Fez murmured, a hint of disappointment clear in his voice. Lexi wondered why at first, but was then relieved of her questions.

"Should I.. Should I bring you home?" He asked.

"No. I'm tired," She replies. She wants to stay with him, but she's not lying when she says she's tired.

Fez's face lights up slightly as she says it. "Sure. Let's getchu in bed."

And so, they end up in Fez's bedroom, where Fez eventually fishes an old T-shirt out of his closet for Lexi to wear. She's okay with just wearing a shirt, as it fits her like a dress.

When they're both dressed in nightwear-- Fez in his M&M pyjama pants, which Lexi adores, they get into bed. 

"Can I lie on that side of the bed, ma?" He whispers, as Lexi gets ready to get under the covers on the side of the door. She steps away from the bed, and then they swap places. "Sure," She mumbles.

"'S just a safety thing," He says it so soft, Lexi's almost not sure if she actually heard him say it. The lights are off now.

When they lie down, they turn to face each other. Lexi slides herself closer to him, snuggling up against him. Her forehead's on his chest, touching the fabric of his grey shirt. He puts his hand on her side and Lexi squirms under the touch, yet it's not even skin-to-skin contact.

They lie like that for quite some time, until Lexi starts to feel a bit lightheaded. She pulls her head away from his chest, in an attempt to get herself a bit more air, and turns her body around. Their positions change, and now Lexi lies in Fez's arms like a baby, cradled and nurtured. 

His arm is around her waist, his hand down flat on her stomach. She can feel his breath through her hair on her neck. His knees against the back of her thighs. And after some time, she notices something poking into her back. 

It is around that same time, that Fez checks whether she's already asleep. When he notices she isn't, he tells her he's got to run to the bathroom real quick. 

When he returns, Lexi is sound asleep. 

The next morning, Lexi is the first to wake. She decides to get out and make some quick breakfast for the two of them, as she doesn't have much time before she needs to head out to school again. Fez brings her there, with her bike, so she can bike herself to work later that afternoon when the school bell rings again. 

And so she spends another day waitressing, before being picked up by her knight in shining armor again. He suggests they go see Faye the next day, and Lexi agrees. She's desperately craving some time away from a restaurant or café, and she knows she still has enough time to get her finances in order. Besides that, Fez has been bugging her with questions about her harsh working schedule. He thinks she's overworking herself, that she's already made what's necessary for rent with her hours. She doesn't want him suspicious of her, nor does she want him to have to worry about her. 

When he brings her home, her keys are where they are supposed to be. But Lexi is thankful they weren't there a day before. She's thankful she got to spend the night with him. An innocent sleep-over.

Her mom questions her on why she had left so early for school that morning, and Lexi lies through her teeth about some school project she'd needed to work on. Her mom tells her she's taking on some more sick days, as she, as she liked to call it, needed to rejuvenate from her week of being sick. Lexi sighs and heads on into her room, ready for another day. 

The next day at school goes by fast, although Mr. Swimmer keeps her in his class during the break for not having done her reading. That's a first time for her. 

When Fez picks her up, she is excited to be seeing Faye again. It had been a while for Lexi since she'd last visited her. For Fez, it had only been a week.

They make their way to the women's facility and go through the whole security thing, where the staff seems to go a bit harder on Fez than on Lexi. Lexi shoots him a sympathetic look when they pat Fez down a third time. He rolls his eyes, and Lexi laughs, while the security personnel seems to find it a bit less funny.

Finally, they end up at a table with Faye. 

"Oh my God, I'm so excited to see the two of you together here!" She exclaims with a wide smile. "Why didn't you guys bring Rue? And, you know, Ash should come here too sometime. I know he hates me, but that's like so irrelevant." 

Fez and Lexi exchange a look, then laugh. "I think Rue is... a bit busy maybe? She's kind of seeing someone right now, I suppose." Lexi decides to tell her. She doesn't know all that much about the Rue and Jules situation, but she can guess.

"Good for her! As long as it's not that bitch that left her at a fucking train station." She rolls her eyes, and Lexi chuckles. "That's Jewel?" Fez asks, looking sort of confused. He wasn't entirely following everything that happened throughout that relationship.

Lexi nods, and then holds her breath. "Oh God, isn't that the girl that hooked up with that old guy Ash beat to crap in your living room? The guy that had like, weird ass father-son sexual activities." Faye's mouth falls open, and she then shakes her head. "No way," She sighed.

Lexi looked at Fez for a moment. "Hold up, Cal Jacobs was in your living room?" She asked. 

"You two need'a keep your voice a bit down. You got court in like, what, two weeks, Faye? This ain't the kinda shit I came here to discuss, okay?" Fez gets serious, and Lexi feels a bit uneasy about her earlier question. She shouldn't have asked that here.

"Yeah, court in two weeks, I think. But it's fine! I didn't kill the dude for being nice. He wasn't nice to me. It was self-defense." She stresses the last words she says a bit more.  

"I know. But 's not up for me to decide. I know you got a for bono kinda lawyer, or whatever it's called, make sure he good. Make sure he knows the story, and make sure you do too. I'm not finna do the whole witness thing for you to just be back in jail after." Fez says, and Lexi holds back laughter as he mentions a for bono kinda lawyer, but she doesn't correct him. 

"You know, I kind of won't have anywhere to go when I get out..." Faye pouts her lips, as far as that is possible, looking all droopy, in order to hopefully get him to offer her a place to stay. Of course it works. "What did you expect? We just gon' let you out on the streets like that again? Nah. You get Ash's bed." 

Faye gets big eyes. "Are you serious? That is so nice. I mean, I swear I won't be a bother to you guys. And if you'd like me to leave for a bit, so you two can have some alone time, I understand. I don't want to intrude on anything." 

Lexi and Fez both stay silent at her comment. They hadn't really told anyone about the two of them being together. 

"Come on, I knew from the second you walked into that store that you two needed to hook up. That tension was insane. And then mister sex-tape father-son weirdo walked in to ruin things." Faye groaned. "And the way Fez just stared that guard down?  Creepy ass guard was looking at your ass. If looks could kill, Fez would be back in jail."

Lexi felt herself blush. Fez being all jealous or protective over her really did something to her that she couldn't quite grasp. 

She heard Fez cough beside her. "Well, he seemed like a creep. Hopin' we getchu out here soon as well."

"I wanna see Ash again. You can see Ash again, right? We should have a bonding experience! Like a reunion party!" Faye seemed ecstatic. In her mind, she was already out of here. Lexi felt a bit of a knot in her stomach thinking about the possibility that she'd actually be found guilty of murder. 

"I think Ash is like, dying to see you again too." Fez dryly responds to her raving. 

"Really?" Faye looks like a little girl hearing that she's going to Disneyland for the first time.

"Nah." Fez says. "But he probably okay witchu, an' wit a whole bonding experience. 'Cause like, you did kinda save him on the stand, and he's thankful," He speaks, trying to minimize the unanticipated emotional damage he only just realized he may be causing.

"Great, then that's taken care of. But what do we do for the bonding experience? Like, play a game or something? Truth or dare is so boring though," Faye whined.

"We'll go bowling," Lexi suggests, "It's fun."

"I've never bowled." The other girl mumbled. "You'll like it. I'm really bad at it, but it's just throwing a ball." Lexi reassured her. Faye batted her eyelashes at her. "Okay. I believe you."

Faye talked a bit more about herself after that. About her new cell mate, and the fight that broke out a couple days before. About the awful food she'd been getting, about the weird sexual activities that went on in the prison chapel, and the way her hands itched after working the laundry department all day. 

Eventually, it was time for them to say goodbye again. On their way out, Lexi noticed one of the guards staring particularly long at her and down her body, such that she felt uncomfortable about it herself. Quick enough, she felt Fez's arm around her, having observed the guard looking at her like that. 

Once they were out, Lexi giggled, "You didn't have to do that." Of course, he didn't have to. But she liked that he did.

"I did have to do that, 'cause he gotta know you my girl, right?" Fez claps back at her. He'd never called her that before-- his girl. For Lexi, it felt oddly satisfying hearing those words come out of his mouth.

As they get back to his place, Fez orders tacos, and Lexi reminds herself of the fact that she was going to work on some English assignment with Rue somewhere that week. She had to admit to herself that that evening would probably work out best for her, as she'd planned on working for the rest of the week.

That is why after Fez and Lexi have dinner,  they only get to have a short make out session before Fez has to drive her home again. There, she waits for Rue to come by. 

"Have you been working again?" Her mother asks while she sits in the living room. "Eh, no. I was with Fezco." She admits trutfully. "Oh," She says, "So are the two of you dating? Is he your boyfriend now?" 

She turns red, but doesn't care. She's not ready for that admission, yet. "No." She firmly states while thinking about the way he called her his girl earlier that day. "Hmm," Her mom sounded. 

"I'm waiting for Rue," Lexi changes the subject. "She's coming by for a school assignment."

"How nice, hon." Her mom switched the TV on. "Well, do it in your room. I'm watching Millionaire Matchmaker."

At that moment, their doorbell rang, and Lexi ran to open the door. "Lexi!" Rue jumped up and embraced her shortly. "I'm so excited to be working on school with you again. Just like old days," Rue enthusiastically spoke. Lexi remembered the days she was talking about.

"Yeah, God, that seems lives ago," She spoke. In a way, it was true. It felt like Rue had lived a whole different life and turned back to her own just recently. It was strange, how much had changed.

"Let's get working," Rue pulled Lexi after her, into the house, like it was her own. "Hi Rue!" They heard Suze from the living room. "Hello there, miss Howard." Rue calmly greeted her back. She wanted to go to the living room, but Lexi quickly stopped her. "She's watching Millionaire Matchmaker," Lexi whispered.

"Oh, is she?" Rue asked. 

Lexi nodded, then took Rue with her into her room. "What's the assignment about? I didn't really read into it," Lexi confessed as they sat by their desk while her laptop was still starting up. 

"Lexi Howard not reading into her assignments early? Girl, what is wrong with you?" Rue poked at her. Lexi quickly shrugged, trying to avoid the question. "No, I'm serious. You've been acting suspiciously. Working all the time, disappearing everywhere, leaving Fezco's place late at night... It's him, huh?" 

Lexi shook her head nervously. How could she lie? Why would she lie? She wasn't sure. She hadn't discussed this with Fez. She stared down at her unpolished nails. She really needed to file them down.

"You don't gotta say it, Lex. I've known you since preschool, and that glow on your face? I know it's because of Fezco, because he's the only other person I know that you hang out with too and has been wearing that same kind of glow." Rue wore a smirk. 

"Let's just get on with this assignment. What's it about, anyway?" Lexi fell back to her tactics of changing the subject. 

"It's about a story called Fezco and Lexi," Rue now grinning widely. Lexi sighed, shaking her head. "There is no such story," She awkwardly said. "Okay! But this story is a bit like it, I suppose. It's called Romeo and Juliet." Rue continued her torture.

Lexi playfully elbowed her. "That's a tragedy, Rue, they both die at the end. What do you mean that's a bit like the story of Fezco and Lexi?"

Rue snorted, and her eyes went big. "So you mean to say there is a story of Fezco and Lexi? Gotcha."

Lexi put her hands in front of her face. "Let's just get started, please." She begged her friend. 

"Only because you ask so nicely," Rue showed her teeth. "It's some big ass article, we need to write. And we need to rewrite the story as a modern play, so that's totally your specialty."

They started on the assignment, and didn't finish it until early the next morning. Rue eventually spent the night sleeping in Cassie's bed, after Lexi made sure her mother knew where she was staying. 

The days following that passed by, following the same routine as the week before. Lexi went to school, to work, saw Fez, and slept (better than she had before). She needed to go on about that same routine for ten days  or so, to ensure herself of the money for her appointment with Laurie in about two weeks from that moment.

 It wasn't until Saturday that she had another altercation on the work floor.

Chapter Text

That next Saturday it had been the first time for Lexi to cut a shift short.

It had been a couple hours into her evening shift when a man told Lexi he had found that a mistake had been made with his bill. According to him, whatever it was that he had chosen to eat, had a price of $13.

But what the man had been saying, was false. Lexi had shown him the menu card, where the price for the meal was stated to be $23.

The man had complained, saying that the font used in the menu card made the prices illegible. To that, Lexi had responded by stating that the font used on the bill was actually exactly the same as the one used on the menu card. So if he could read the bill, he could read the menu card.

The man hadn't liked that statement, and he was quick to throw the last of his drink into Lexi's face, asking her if she thought he was dumb.

Her manager had rushed to her side at the commotion, threatening to call the cops on the man. He eventually paid up, and was then escorted out by security personnel.

Lexi had told her manager she had no issues finishing up her shift, but she wanted to hear none of it. She would pay for all hours Lexi was supposed to work, so she only made some losses as to tips. She could live with that.

Besides, Lexi had stupidly tried to dry off her face without looking into a mirror, smearing her makeup including her red lipstick all over her face.

So, she called Fez to pick her up early. He was immediately pretty concerned, afraid something bad had happened. Lexi had to explain over and over that her face was okay, and that the ice in the drink hadn't hurt her whatsoever.

Lexi stayed over at Fez's after her altercation and stayed the night there for the second time that week. Once again, nothing more than sleeping really happened between the two while in bed.

They made out for a bit, yes, but Lexi couldn't help tensing up every time his hand went anywhere even remotely near her sex organ. And Fez couldn't help but notice, which is why he'd keep his hands out of the particular neighborhood.

Lexi felt the intimacy of sleeping right by each other, in each other's arms, was for now, good with her. It was better than satisfiable, more than enough to feed her cravings, even if those were bigger than she could have foreseen.

She felt comfortable with Fez, so comfortable that they could discuss their intimacy as if it were any other subject.

"I want to take it slow," Lexi says at one point after they kiss that next morning. "Of course. You decide the pace we go at. Ion' ever want you doin' somethin' you not comfortable wit', Lex," He gently cups her face.

"Speakin' of that, I was thinkin' bout what I'm supposed to tell people. Like, I just know Rue's gonna start a whole ass inquisition to find out what's goin' on here between us two. Faye already been knew.. But what about Ash?" He rubs his scruff.

Lexi looked him in the eyes, furrowing her brows. "You haven't spoken to Rue? The night we did homework together, she already made it very clear to me that she was aware of our thing. I tried to dismiss it, but she was adamant she knew what was going on. Um, sorry," She apologizes, not really certain if he'd wanted Rue to know.

"Don't apologize about that shit, Lexi. Ion' even mind. I want people to know... That, y'know, you my girl," He says, and the corners of Lexi's lips curl up. "But nah, I haven't really spoken to Rue since she asked for that money. I'm still kinda torn on what to do 'bout it." He continues.

Lexi feels a knot in her stomach. She feels like she has got to say something, anything, to relieve him of his worrying. "Fez, I know that this sounds a bit harsh for Rue but I think you have to get your own finances in order first." Lexi ends up saying.

"I know, I know. Ion' know how the gas station is keepin' me afloat right now, I really need to figure this shit out. In 'bout two weeks from now, I'm planning to sell off part of the batch I got left lying around, that's got to help me out quite some. Maybe can help Rue out, then," Fez sighs. In two weeks from now is okay, because Lexi knows it won't be necessary anymore by then.

"Yeah," She replies. She wants to tell him she'd be ready to help him out anytime, if she has the funds, but Fez is faster. "So, what 'bout Ash? Can he know about you bein' my girl?" He smoothly changes back to their initial subject.

Lexi laughs. She wonders if Ashtray would be perfectly fine with his brother dating her. She was pretty sure he'd known there was a little something underneath the surface, seeing as he pointed out how excited Fez had been to go to her play, with the roses and the card and the suit and all that. But still, there was a chance Ash would see her as some kind of barrier between him and his brother.

"I mean, yeah, I'm okay with it. Is he gonna be okay with it?" She expresses her worries out loud.

Fez grins. "He's gonna have to be. Ion' really think he'd mind, anyway. Think he already kinda knows how I feel aboutchu. He's gonna be here next Thursday, y'know. You should come by too," He suggests. 

Lexi's in doubt as to whether that actually is a good idea. "You don't think he'd be annoyed? Like, I'd think he'd want some time alone with you." She states.

"Hmm," Fez drawls, "I mean, he's out at like 12, Ion' know about you. But maybe if you jus' come here with dinner, then Ash and me will have enough alone time."

"Okay," Lexi nods, shooting a glance over at the clock. "I'm gonna have to go though, another shift till later tonight, but I wanna go by bike, it's nice weather." She tries to pull off her nicest smile, trying not to make it come across as if she doesn't want him to bring her. She was being honest with Fez, she really wanted to be on her bike. The sun was shining, and she needed to catch some vitamin D.

Thankfully, Fez didn't seem hurt or upset by it. "Alright, but I am picking you up tonight, so text me the address. " He hugged her.   "Yeah, as always," Lexi spoke into the nape of his neck, before they pulled apart again, and Lexi took off on her bike.

When the next Thursday came around, Lexi was excited to be seeing Ashtray again. She liked the kid, he'd mostly been nice to her. She saw him in the hallways of East Highland High some days, and he greeted her without a second thought. It seemed he'd made a couple friends, although she wasn't entirely sure how happy he was with those friends. Lexi figured that the kids from his year just wouldn't match up to Ashtray, when it came to maturity.

So when Fezco let her in that evening, and she saw Ashtray sitting on the couch, it was one of the first things Lexi asked about. 

"Yo, Lex," Ash acknowledged her. "Hi," She'd said back. "How are you? Liking school so far?" She plunged down onto the sofa. Ash rolled his eyes, "Can't believe I gotta put up with this another four years or so. 'S hella stupid," He clarified.

Lexi laughed. "Welcome to the real word," She chuckled. "But I mean, do you really not like any of it? There's nothing about school you're interested in? No course, no friends?" She questioned him further. A tight-lipped smile formed on his face. "I like my chem classes. I know all that shit, periodic table 's not necessary. Teacher didn't like when I pitched my idea to make methylenedioxy-methamphetamine in class. Said she was gon' call my parents if I mentioned the ingredients and shit once more."

Fez bursted out laughing behind them. "Man, you gotta calm it down. Yo foster parents ain't gonna like it if they get a call like that. I just convinced 'em to let you stay with me not next weekend but like, the weekend after this one. Don't wanna ruin that, Ash." He warned him.

Ashtray groaned. "It's hella backward though. They makin' us read books! I'm tellin' you, that's the weirdest shit. You just supposed to look at these slices of tree an' hallucinate, for like, the entirety of high school. But God forbid I talk about molly, huh." He commented. Fez shrugged, holding back his laughter now to not give Ash too much credit. He didn't want Ash thinking that what he was doing was funny, even if it was. He needed to be a bit strict now.

"C'mon, these pizza's are gettin' cold," Fez picked the boxes off the kitchen counter. Lexi remembered seeing the pizza guy leave right before she got there, unaware then that they were having pizza that night. But as if Fez knew, Lexi had been craving pizza that entire week. She smiled.

As they began eating, Ashtray opened his mouth again to speak. "Y'all don't gotta call me a dumbass, but I kinda already got in a fight with my foster fam," He said, leaving both Fez and Lexi waiting for more. Instead, Ashtray continued eating his slice, as if he didn't need to explain himself at all. "Why?" Fez eventually asked.

Ashtray shove the rest of his pizza down his throat before speaking again. "So I was at the bike shop with the foster female, or my foster mother, whatever, I don't wanna call her that. But anyway, my bike needed a new tire 'cause it was just shit. So we were there."

Another silence hung over their heads.  "I don't get it," Fez stated, and Lexi could only agree with him that his explanation didn't really make any sense.

"It turned out mister bike man, is also mister I grope my waitress when I eat out man. I called him a perv, foster ma didn't like it."

Lexi remembered the run-in she had in a restaurant on one of her first shifts. It felt ages ago, even if it had only really been about two and a half weeks since.

"You did?" She asked. She realized her voice was extremely small all of a sudden. She didn't know whether to thank Ash or be mad at him for getting himself in trouble.

"'Course I did, yo. Weird ass fuckin' bitch, he is. Really shoulda slapped him," Ash responds, and Fez shakes his head. "Ash, you gotta leave shit like that to me. Ion' want you in trouble or nothin', even if you mean well."

Ash shrugs. "I would do it again."

His brother sends him a disapproving glare, but changes the subject by asking him about his homework.

"But seriously, I understand that I missed like two years of history classes. But shit, how the fuck they go through like thousands of years of history in two years? I expected to be talking about like, maybe the Romans and Greeks. Not no motherfuckin' tea party they makin' me do a thing on," Ashtray is complaining.

"Oh, the Boston Tea Party! That's interesting. What kind of assignment do you have on it?" Lexi enthusiastically speaks.

"Got to write some dumb diary entry, like I'm some person who's going to the tea party thing. Tell me, Lex, I look like a tea party person to you?" He sniffs.

Lexi puts her hand down on the kitchen table, sticking up her index finger. "I'll help you," She offers.

"Nah, I know you a good writer and shit but I ain't gonna let you write this for me," He declines, and Lexi rolls her eyes. "I'm not writing it for you, silly. Just thought I'd help you."

"Oh," Ash responds. "Okay. Yeah, I'd like that. I have to hand it in next Monday, so can you do next Sunday? I have to go do stupid family shit with my foster fam on Saturday, so I can't work on it then. And tonight I have to be home early too, 'cause they be sayin' I have to be awake in class tomorrow morning. But 's not like I can help that by sleeping in early, Friday morning drama classes are mad boring," He talks. 

Fez frowns, then shakes his head. "I hated drama classes. Miss Applebee or whatever her name was, was the worst. But still, yo, you gotta pay attention in your classes. Can't be droppin' out like me. 'S your future, Ash."

Ashtray gets up from his seat to put the empty plate down in the sink. "Can we play some Mario Kart before we leave? My new parents don't like me playin' video games. Says it's bad for my development or something. I call bullshit," He groans.

"Hmm," Fez drawls, "For sure."

Fez  now gets up from his seat too, grabbing both his own plate as well as Lexi's and puts it on top of Ash's plate in the sink. He dives into a cabinet and comes out with a white wii device, walking over to the tv to connect it. When he grabs the consoles, he looks at Lexi. "Lex, you playin'?" He questions her. 

Lexi doesn't get any time to respond, because Ashtray speaks for her, "Of course she is." Lexi grins at him. "Yeah," She affirms. 

And so, they sit behind the TV with each a firm grip on their console, far too invested in getting their own rankings to be higher than the others'. "Imm'a win, this shit easy with you two," Ash yells while not moving his eyes off the screen. 

"Don't think so, bro," Fez said as his racecar bolted past Wario, Ash's character of choice. "No fuckin' way, this console giving out on me. Shit's not fair," Ash grumbled as he shook the console, in an attempt to get it to work again. 

Quickly, he ran behind on the other cars as well. He finally got the console to work again when he was ranking ninth in the race, too far behind to still regain his status as front runner.

"We got a third one for a reason, remember? One of 'em wasn't working so well," Fez reminded his brother, nodding at the console. It didn't help Ash and his frustrations. "You shoulda' given Lex that one, no one would have noticed if hers didn't properly work," He nodded at the number that indicated her ranking. She was twelfth, in a race consisting of twelve racers. 

"Shut up." She hissed at Ash, who playfully stuck out his tongue at her. At that moment, Lexi noticed the bullet bill as her newly attained item and chose to employ it right away. She flew past Ash, picked up another mushroom from a mystery item box, and landed herself at fourth place. 

It irked Ash to see that he was now losing to the both of them. "No fucking way," He muttered, and concentrated on getting back on track. But Lexi was going at an unprecedented speed now, and with the aid of the mushroom item, Princess Daisy dashed past Toad, bumping Fez back to second place.  "Crap," Fez spat. 

"Don't be a sore loser," Lexi chuckled at the two. She was close to ending the game first place, although Fez was still a bit too close behind her for her liking. She picked up another mystery item, and grinned at the sight of the banana peel. Fez was far too invested in the own part of his screen to even notice.

So when Toad trailed ride behind Lexi, just about to bump into her, Fez was grinning from ear to ear. "Sorry, Lex," He mumbled a quick apology. But he spoke too soon, was too hopeful. Lexi left the banana peel right there on the ground behind her, and they each saw Toad tumble towards the water, where he ran into a crab, launching him into another spin. 

"Come on now, Lexi. 'S really my own girl doing me dirty like that, huh," Fez threw his hands up in defeat. At the sound of his words, Ashtray pressed the pause button, and the game came to a halt. "Elaborate," He demanded. 

Fez raised his eyebrows, and Lexi looked equally stunned for a second, but then figured it out. "I mean, kinda been wanting to ask, y'know. I see the way y'all act all sweet an' giggly around each other. Now you sayin' she your girl? Bro, you ain't tell me shit these days."

"Uh, um... Yeah," Fez tries to find the right words to explain. "'We wasn't like, actively hiding it or anything," He attempts to defend himself. Lexi is moving her eyes from Fez to Ash, trying to gain an understanding of Ashtray's feelings. His face is neutral, though, so she doesn't assume that he's mad, or disappointed.

"I damn well knew it," Ash exclaims. "But if the two of you are getting too cozy in here I'm callin' CPS." He threatens, and Lexi beams at his playfulness. "Yeah? What they gonna do, put yo ass into a foster family?" Fez rolls his eyes. 

"I ain't kidding, if you two get cosy with me around I'm going to fucking revolt. So you better watch yourselves," Ash presses a button on his console to resume the race. "Let's go, Lexi. Beat his ass," Ashtray cheers her on. It's only a few seconds later when she crosses the finish lines ranked first, Fez coming on at a lazy third place. Ash has given up in the meanwhile, his console once more letting him down. 

Ash jumps off the couch, ecstatic about his brother losing to Lexi. After that, Fez looks at the clock and determines it is time for him to bring Ash home. They drop him off at his home, then return to Fez's place.

"Y'know, I think, I think he took it well," Fez says as they step out of the car. "Like, he wasn't mad or nothing. He almost seemed excited 'bout it."

Lexi nods. "I thought so too. I guess maybe the fact that he doesn't have to bear witness to us two all the time now, as he doesn't actually live here anymore, is something that comforts him. I don't know." She commented.

They walked into the house. 

"Selfishly, I'm kinda glad he ain't here all the time now that we... Got this, this thing," He looks at her as she leans into the cabinet to grab a glass. "Oh yeah?" Lexi asks flirtatiously as she turns around to look back at him. 

"Yeah." Fez replied, batting his eyelashes at her in an almost provocative way. He then walked over to the couch.

Suddenly, Lexi didn't need a drink anymore. She places the glass back into the cupboard, thirsty for something a bit different. She walks over to the couch, plopping herself down next to Fez.

"So why's that?" Lexi challenged him on his statement, fully aware of what he had meant and his reasons. Fez groaned, turning to her and scooting closer. "Because, y'know, I wouldn't be able to do this wit' him round here," He whispered softly, before inching closer to her face and finally pressing his lips on hers.

Lexi could never get sick of that particular feeling. It was like an ocean with a pull stronger than anything she'd felt. A warm hug of water that comforted her, fish tickling her body as they swam past. She could be pulled under the surface a thousand times before drowning.

Opening her mouth, she felt his tongue move in, past her teeth, hugging her own tongue, a pleasurable embrace that quickly moved on to become a tango underneath the night's stars, the darkness of their mouths.

One of his hands laid firmly on her cheek. The other one moved Lexi to have her back placed against the couch's arm panel, so she could simply lie back and let the waves take her places. She pushed back, her lips pressing harder against his, refusing to let him take on all the work.

Lexi held onto Fez's scalp with her right hand, drawing tornadoes behind his ear with her thumb. With her other hand, she started trailing down his back, finding the hem of his shirt, aching for more skin. As she slid her hand underneath, Fez grumbled into her mouth, his hand leaving the curve of her cheek to aid her in her quest for more skin.

Their kiss was shortly disrupted by the fabric of his shirt sliding over his head, after which Lexi felt the sudden urge to follow, so that their skin-to-skin contact wasn't just limited to the skin around her hands and the skin around his torso. The upper part of her body now only covered by a bra, Lexi suddenly felt self-conscious, although she didn't want it to show.

"Shit, Lex. Fuckin' goddess, really be doing things to me righ' now." Fez huffed, laying eyes on her, then placing one of his hands along her waist. It was a thrilling sensation, a bewildering account of his experience, a bee's nest that woke up in her lower belly, buzzing by all the flowers that were growing there.

His lips linked with hers again, but not for long. He left a trail of soft pecks along the lower part of her face, until connecting with her neck, where he continued his hard efforts on kissing, tongue included. At one point, the roughness of his tongue meets her skin while his hand has risen up to rest on her breast, and all of a sudden her sex is throbbing, screaming for more.

But Lexi knows that she needs to use her head in this moment, she needs to use her brain. She needs to think before her primal urges have her doing things she's not yet ready for, not yet okay with. Even if she already knows she will sometime be ready for Fez, be okay with Fez.

"God, Fez," She whimpers at the sensations he's making her feel. She worries she'd explode underneath his calloused hands, his touch releasing energies within her she wasn't sure she even had. 

A ringing noise interrupted their make out session. It was Fez's phone, the name of his little brother lighting up the screen. Fez grunted, his lips crashing back onto her collar bones. Lexi threw her head back into the couch's soft material, admiring the softness that radiated from his mouth through her body. 

"Don't you need to pick that up? It's Ash," Lexi looked down at his face nearing her breasts as the ringing continued. She wanted his face right where it was headed, but couldn't bear the weight of possibly denying Ashtray a very necessary phone call. It had to be urgent if he called right after he was dropped off, right?

Fez lifted himself up to face Lexi. "You sure? I mean... He can wait up a bit," He was clearly in doubt as to what to do, so Lexi made the decision for him and grabbed the phone off the table next to them. Fez took the phone from her hands and finally hoisted himself up to sit back normally on the couch. 

Lexi readjusted her positioning too, pulling her legs up on the couch, up against her body, hiding her stomach. She wrapped her arms around her legs, clenching her thighs as she swiftly became aware of the wetness that had formed between them. She rested her head down on the couch's cushioned arm panel, listening in on the conversation between Fez and Ash. 

"Whassup?" Fez spoke into the phone slowly, after making sure he'd caught his breath, didn't sound like he'd just run a marathon. Lexi heard some noise come out of his phone, but couldn't quite make out any words. "Yo, you forreal a dumbass," She heard Fez say. A smile formed on Lexi's face.

"Yeah, yeah, we'll bring it over in a bit. You ain't go to bed yet? Isn't it like, bedtime for lil boys?" Fez teased his brother through the phone, and Lexi suppressed a chuckle. A few seconds later she heard him say bye and he put down the phone, looking back at Lexi. 

"What was it?" She inquired. "Mhmm," Fez drawled, "Man's forgot his schoolbag." Lexi let out the chuckle she was holding in moments back. "Fuck, Lex, can we continue where we left off?" Fez huffed, his eyes begging for more. Lexi carefully swung her legs of the couch again, turning to sit with her back facing the back pillows and no longer the arm panel. 

She pushed her hands into the seat cushion beneath her, her arms stretched out, letting Lexi lean forward just slightly. She felt bad about refusing him the things he longed for most in that moment, but she wasn't entirely sure sitting there if it was really what she wanted or if she was just really horny. She needed to confirm it with herself when she wasn't horny. 

"Another time?" She turned her head to him and hoped she wasn't being too inconsiderate. At the same time, Lexi knew that she could only ever truly be with a man who fully accepted and acknowledged the importance of consent.  

"Yeah, of course shorty. Wanna drive back down to Ash's to drop off his schoolbag?" He smiled at her, letting her know it was no issue. He picked his shirt off the ground and put it back on. "Sure, I guess that he will need it for school tomorrow morning," She spoke, and saw Fez get off the couch.

Hovering over her, his eyes lingered on something slightly below Lexi's face. She quickly realized that the way she was sitting, the cups of her bra were giving away an awful lot. She felt heat rise to her cheeks, seeing how Fez's gaze was now on the floor, his ears catching a slightly red tone. "I'mma-- I'mma go to the toilet real quick. Before we, uh, before we head out to Ash's." He staggered over his words, making his way over to the bathroom.

"Yeah, yeah, of course," Lexi hastily spoke before he closed the bathroom door behind him. When he got back, she had her shirt on again, and her hair was down in a ponytail to hide the mess that it had become. Fez found the backpack, took it along to the car, and drove over to the house, where a middle-aged lady opened the door. Lexi was watching from the passenger seat how she took the backpack from his grasp, thanked him with a genuinely gracious expression on her face, and then closed the door again. 

"She seemed nice," Lexi noted as Fez sat back beside her. "Yeah," He murmured. "Hey, I think I should get home too. Catch up on some homework," She sighed, realizing the amount of work that was sitting unfinished on her desk stressed her out. She didn't even want to start on it, but knew she had to. "Just need'a pick up your bike," Fez nodded, as he drove back towards his place. 

When the bike was loaded into the trunk, they headed for the Howard residence. "Your mom good again?" Fez asked, and Lexi said yes. "She's back to work next week, so I'm actually working a last shift tomorrow," She elaborated. "Good," Fez said as they rolled up to the house.

They said their goodbyes, hugged each other, before Lexi crashed down into her own bed again. The rest was only shortlasted, as she moved up to her desk to get some work done. It took her until 4 in the morning, but that did get her most of her assignments done. Granted, Lexi almost fell asleep during her classes the next morning. 

Lexi worked her last shift that Friday. It was fine, nothing too bad, nothing too good. She got the money and knew it had to be more than enough to cover the last remaining part of her debt. She hadn't counted her money in days, so she actually probably even exceeded the necessary amount. At least that gave her a buffer in case she needed to run by the store for the groceries again in the next week.

Lexi spent quite some with Fez over the next weekend. She hangs out with him at his store, helping him restock and making out with him in the back office right before they hear new customers come in. Rue comes by to get herself a Gatorade, alongside her is Jules, who is surprised to hear from Rue that Fez and Lexi are actually together. 

On the Sunday that she is supposed to help Ashtray with his homework he cancels their plans, saying that his foster mother have thwarted them. She apparently thought Ashtray needed to be making his homework by himself that day, especially considering he was going to stay over at Fez's for the entirety of the next weekend. It came as a bitter kind of relief to Lexi, finally getting some time to herself, to rest. 

Lexi is acclimating to a new schedule, one where she can actually take a breath. Lexi follows her classes, her mother's back at work. Lexi still occasionally sees Ashtray in the hallway, and she can almost anticipate the excited "Yo Lex!" whenever she spots his buzzcut. Although Fezco doesn't have to pick her up from work every night anymore, she still finds herself in his car at night pretty often.

Everyday, Lexi comes out of school vowing to herself that she finishes her homework before calling him. When she does end up taking out her phone and dialing him, he is there to pick her up in a heartbeat. Sometimes they stay in the car, sometimes they go back to his place. 

On Thursday evening Fezco asks her if she's going to be at Virgil's party that next Friday, he is planning to sell there. Lexi reminds herself that she needs to drop off the money earlier that day, finally setting herself free from the debt to Laurie that her own father set her up with. But it is fine-- she has the money. All the bills and coins inside an envelope laying in her room stack up to a total of three thousand seven hundred and four dollars. It's one hundred and sixteen dollars and forty-five cents more than what she actually needs.

She tells Fez she'll be there, likely with Rue and Jules and Elliott as she heard them talk about their plans of going to the party earlier at school that day. Fez is adamant that Lexi shouldn't be with him when he's dealing, wanting to keep her out of it. It's only for this time, as Fez is not planning at selling again after this batch is done for. She's fine with that, she can stick by Rue's side for a bit.  He promises to pick her up at eight the next evening.

When Lexi comes home that night, she hears noises coming from her room, and she stops in her track to figure out a plan of action. The first thing she thinks of is an intruder, because her mother barely ever enters her room unless Lexi's in there. But then she sees her mother walk out her room, and she relaxes again before wondering what her mom was even doing in her room. 

"Hi," She greets her mom. "Sweetie," Suze speaks up. "Were you looking for something?" Lexi feels herself getting nervous. "I'm so sorry, hon, I should've asked. But I know you've been staying out late, so I haven't really had an opportunity to do so." Her mom was restlessly fidgeting around with her fingers, seemingly caught red-handed. Lexi frowned. "Oh," She spoke. "What were you looking for?" 

"Something went wrong with my work administration a while back, so my payouts have been late. It was supposed to be fixed by now, but it's still taking time. Rent's due tomorrow, I'm just two hundred short right now. I know that you've been working hard to get money, I'll pay you back as soon as I get my salary." Her mother explained.

Lexi bit her tongue. Her mom had got to be joking. 

"Are you serious?" Lexi posed the question. "You can not be for real with me right now, do you know how many hours I've been running around restaurants, yelled at by drunk old men, insulted by middle-aged women that didn't like their food?" She gave her mom a glare. Maybe she was overreacting, but her situation was not allowing her to just be okay with this. She needed the money too bad at this moment.

"I can't help it Lexi. It's not my fault they aren't paying me! And last time I checked you live here under the same roof with me, so come on, it's not like I'm just stealing your money, I'm paying you back!" Her mother now fiercely retorted, but it didn't stop Lexi.

"Then why would you still be sending out money to Cassie? If you knew we were in a financial mess why wouldn't you tell me earlier? God, do I really have to look after everything all of the time?" She was seething just thinking about Cassie getting wads of money while they were on the brink of being broke. If her mom had told her earlier, at least she could have still taken on shifts this week, so she would have actually had enough money for both Laurie and rent. 

"You really think I'm still sending your sister money? I stopped doing so once she stopped calling, and that is quite a while back, might I mention!" Suze spat back, and Lexi crossed her arms over each other on her chest. She tried to regain control of herself, counting to ten, breathing in and out. 

"Okay." She finally said. What else was she supposed to do? Was she supposed to just sit back and wait until they got kicked out of their house because their rent wasn't paid? 

Lexi walked into her room, grabbing the envelope filled with money from underneath her mattress. She took out four fifty dollar bills, calculating in her head how much she was now going to be short. A little over eighty dollars. 

She could make that in an evening shift. If she skipped out on the party, and came in one day late. Would it be better to just act like she didn't count the money correctly, say she'll bring the remaining part over the next day? Her head was way too clouded to think about stuff like that. She'd have to get some sleep, think it over again. 

She handed her mother the money without saying a word.