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[sub]A [@metanoia] & [@Venus] Collaboration || Featuring [color=b8860b]Marco Brady[/color] & [color=ab42a9]Lanie Lancaster[/color][/sub]
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[color=silver][indent][indent][indent]The memory of hers and Mordechai’s first time together came rushing into Elaine’s mind like an overflowing river, flooding the young woman with feelings she wasn’t prepared to handle. While she had been prepared to face the death glares and snide comments from her former cheerleading friends, she hadn’t imagined in her wildest dreams that Decky would choose this moment to return to town. By now, she was holding Roddy’s hand so tightly she was surprised he hadn’t said anything. She knew that her face was probably reflecting the many feelings wreaking havoc in her chest, but keeping a stoic expression was the least of her worries. She was angry, she was upset, she was hurting, she was betrayed. Let the whole world see it.

In the past, Marco wasn’t known for his awareness. And he sure as hell wasn’t all that known for taking into account social queues. Maybe you could chalk that up to Marco being blissfully aware of how sometimes people wanted some privacy and how sometimes, even if he didn’t intend to, not knowing when to leave and when to just stay put made people become frustrated with him. It led to some roll their eyes when they had to leave instead.

 But that was no longer the case. Now Marco understood when he needed to take the neon sign hint that his friends wanted to be alone.

Or, honestly, just wanted to have a private conversation.

And when he let Jade, Poppy, and Decky -- that was his name, right? Kai or something like that. Honestly, it had been so long since Marco had seen his face around Edenridge that he found himself blanking on his name when he was limping down the bleachers.

God, why did Marco decide to climb so high? With how his bones were cracking and his limbs likely cursing him all the same, he shouldn’t have done it.

But it was okay. All he had to do was go down about five levels and he could limp safely on the ground. How Marco managed to do that without dropping the box of cannolis that Danny entrusted him with was beyond any scope of comprehension Marco, past or present, was capable of. What mattered was that he could walk. 

Or, well whatever Marco’s one-step limp could be called.

[color=b8860b]“Hey, that's actually clever. Marco One-Step Brady! I can start a troupe. We can tour Boston and make some money.”[/color]

Oh, the things Marco did to entertain his mind as he somewhat aimlessly wandered around the gymnasium. He had lost sight of basically everyone he met when coming here. He didn’t see Danny anywhere. He definitely lost sight of Jade and the others as the bleachers were kind of blocked by the mess of former students of their senior class, who Marco remembered being a lot shorter.

Then again, him having a slouched stature nowadays, maybe that’s why he thought that.

[i]Anyway[/i], he had to sit down soon. His legs were starting to ache again. 

Guess Marco One Step isn’t ready for the stage yet.

Marco took a quick glance around, initially because he wanted to find a seat, but what he got was something better.

Next to his PT bud was one of his closest friends. Right behind his family, Danny tied with two other people: Roddy Callahan and Lanie Lancaster. Roddy and Marco were recovering at the same hospital and had their physical therapy aligned around the same time, so they had a lot of time to get to know each other. Their love for sports was honestly what really made Marco a fan of his. Of course, he didn’t like that Marco called soccer football and American football the fake news of football.

And next to him was Lanie.

Lanie was just...God, where did Marco even begin? How many times had they been there for each other? How many times had Marco confided in her? How many times had they pigged out to whatever he felt like cooking? It was impossible to list just how much he loved her. Lanie was his platonic soulmate and that was a fact. He was Rylie’s godfather-- and whenever she needed him to watch Rylie or if she had to do anything, Lanie always knew that she could leave the little girl with him. She was as important to him as her mother was.

And when he saw the look on her face, that cocktail of pain and heartbreak and sheer anger, he didn’t even think about how much his legs were hurting nor how many steps it was from where he was and where she was, he just limped to her.

And every bone that could ache did. But Marco didn’t care.

And then he was in front of her, offering her not only a smile but he lifted up the box of cannoli’s up to her as if offering her it. [color=b8860b]“You look like you can use some comfort food.” [/color]

Lost as she was in the memories of a happier time, it took some time for Elaine to acknowledge Marco approaching her. It wasn’t until he heard his soft voice accompanied by the kindest of smiles that she was able to snap out of her thoughts and be gently brought back to reality. In response, Lanie offered her best friend a tearful smile and nodded in agreement with his words. She needed a hell of a lot more than just some comfort food, and Mac knew it. She turned to Roddy to politely excuse herself before letting go of his hand, locking her arm with Marco’s, and slowly walked off to a place where they could talk more privately.

[color=ab42a9]“You have no idea how thankful I am for your friendship right now, Marco,”[/color] Lanie told the boy sweetly. She could feel tears of gratitude starting to pool up in her eyes again, so she looked away and blinked hard in an attempt to get rid of them before looking at her best friend again. The last thing she wanted was to let any of the vultures in this room see her cry-- grateful or not. [color=ab42a9]“Are you okay, though? Do you need to sit down? I saw you were limping a little bit. I don’t want you to get hurt in any way!”[/color] 

[color=b8860b]“Oh, don’t sweat it! I’m okay!”[/color] Marco waved away Lanie’s concern. 

But it was well-placed because he was aching all over. Maybe it was his athletic perseverance that sometimes had him almost sabotage himself. If he was with Danny right now, not only would he catch it, but he always had a way of getting Marco to do what was best for Marco, even if Marco didn’t like it at first. 

And maybe it was his stubbornness that made him not want to do what might be best for his own physical well-being, but he couldn’t let that plague his mind right now, not when it seemed like Lanie was in need of that special brand of sunshine that Marco Brady was known for.

Choosing the lesser of two evils, Marco temporarily switched positions by putting most of his weight on the leg that wasn’t as bad as his recently recovered one. [color=b8860b]“So!”[/color] He grimaced slightly, though he turned it into a forced smile. [color=b8860b]“What’s going on, Lanes? Did you want to go somewhere and talk? I mean, you can have as many cannoli’s as you want if you don’t feel up to talking.”[/color] 

Lanie shook her head at his offer. As delicious as she knew cannolis were, mixing the sweets up with the alcohol and unpleasant feelings bubbling up in her stomach didn’t seem like a sensible idea. Throwing up and embarrassing herself tonight wasn’t part of the agenda. [color=ab42a9]“I’m okay, Mac. It’s just…[/color]” She trailed off again after a long sigh, shifting her eyes down to stare at the shiny purple lacquer on her toenails. When she finally spoke again, the higher pitch brought upon by aching heartbreak and nervousness rang clear in her voice. [color=ab42a9]“When Roddy first asked me to come, I told him he could piss off. I had no intention of being anywhere near this building tonight. But when he explained his reasoning for wanting to be here, I couldn’t say no. Even with the way things ended between us, I just [i]can’t[/i] let Rod do anything that could hurt him if I have the power to intervene or help him somehow, you know? My conscience doesn’t let me. I love him: he’s my daughter’s dad, and I would do anything for him. I just didn’t think [b][i]he[/i][/b] was going to be here too. If I knew he would be, I wouldn’t have come.”[/color]

He bit his lip almost as a gut instinct when he not only heard the pain in Lanie’s voice, but his legs aching aside, he felt it. It was in his stomach, it tossed like he ate a bad batch of tacos, like someone had actually punched him, dug their fingers into his entrails, and got them twisted up for good measure. But he also felt it when he just looked at her. The way she was talking about Roddy, he found himself just standing there, alternating from good leg to bad to good and he wanted to say something, but by the time she finished, all he could do was grab her hand. 

[color=b8860b]“Lanie…”[/color] He squeezed it, half-frowning, half-smiling at her. He knew who she meant. He didn’t have to ask because he had seen Decky earlier before he ached his way down the bleachers. [color=b8860b]“We...we can leave. Or go elsewhere that’s not here if you want.”[/color]

Lanie shook her head again, turning to Marco with tears in her eyes once more. [color=ab42a9]“I can’t leave Roddy here,”[/color] she whispered sadly, looking back over her shoulder at Roddy and spotting him already caught up in conversation with Kylee Grimm.

Although Lanie was aware that there was nothing between them beyond a platonic friendship like the one she and Marco shared, seeing Roddy and Kylee together felt like another kick to her already injured stomach. Flinching slightly, Lanie looked at her own best friend again. [color=ab42a9]“Even if that Kylee girl is here and is probably very eager to take my place, I can’t just [i]leave[/i] him, you know? I mean, he asked [i]me[/i] to come here with him for a reason, right? If he wanted her to be the one he came here with, he would’ve asked her. Right?”[/color] Elaine knew that she was purposely hyperfocusing on something extremely meaningless, but she didn’t care as long as it kept her mind from trailing back to the presence of her ex-boyfriend.

It wasn’t that Marco felt helpless, but any attempt he made to help her seemed to fail. So he had to go back to the drawing board. [color=b8860b]“Well, you know that’s simply not true. You could never be replaced. You two share something that nobody in this entire world could ever breach.”[/color] Marco’s eyes darted over towards Kylee and Roddy, even if it was for a quick moment. There was nothing negative in the way he looked at them. If anything, it was more of a visual reminder that they were, in fact, over there. Going back to Lanie, he continued, [color=b8860b]“But he did ask you to come with him, so that has to tell you something.”[/color]

The blonde nodded, and for the first time since her eyes had landed on Decky, she gave Marco a small smile. [color=ab42a9]“Did I tell you he said he’d move to Texas with Ryls and I?”[/color] She confessed, that smile still playing around on her lips. [color=ab42a9]“I’m trying not to get my hopes up, of course, but it would still be a really nice thing to have him close enough to be an active part of Rylie’s life.”[/color]

[color=b8860b]“No, I don’t believe you ever mentioned that,”[/color] Marco admitted, almost laughing for a second. He had known Roddy as the type to never make empty promises. That was something that Marco had always admired about him. Regardless of the situation, he always got the sense that he was a man of his word. So if he said that to Lanie, especially if it seemed that he wanted to move with them, then it must be true. [color=b8860b]“Roddy has never been the type to say something if it wasn’t true. Or at least, I never got that vibe from him. And I have to imagine, too, that being near you and Rylie is probably one of the most important things to him right now. My gut is telling me that he means this.”[/color] Marco always went with his gut feeling.

Before Lanie could get a word out, Mei Ramsey’s voice suddenly echoed across the room, aggressively demanding for the culprit behind this unwelcome class reunion to reveal themselves. As if on queue, the lights in the gym suddenly went off, and Lanie instinctively grabbed onto Marco’s arm. And when Allison’s voice began to ring out from the old building’s sound system, followed by the interchanging images of her deceased best friend along to the tune of “Summer Long Gone”, it took every ounce of the blonde’s strength to not succumb to the sudden wave of grief and pain that was threatening to send her funneling to the ground.

[color=b8860b]“Wait, is that…?”[/color] Marco’s voice was low and especially low compared to the voice playing loud enough that everyone heard. 

It took him almost five seconds to register whose voice he heard and his immediate thought was about why Allison Davies’ voice was playing. He didn’t know her well enough to be bothered by hearing her voice. Granted, he was barely a freshman when she died, so Marco wasn’t engrossed in [i]that[/i] side of Edenridge High’s social circles. He just knew that Lanie and her were close.

And when he began to think about it, he felt her grip on his arm tighten. And then it got tighter and tighter. It was more than just your usual comfort squeeze. Something about it alerted Marco to look at her and he just said [color=b8860b]“it’s okay, I’m here”[/color] without even thinking. And he said it loud enough so that she not only heard him, but made sure to wait until she was looking at him (or in his general direction) so that she knew he meant it, too.

For what seemed like the millionth time that night, Lanie’s eyes had filled up with tears. Frankly, she was starting to feel pathetic at this point. She hadn’t cried this much since her breakup with Roddy months ago. Thankfully, she had Marco to keep her somewhat grounded to reality. She barely managed to mouth an inaudible thank you to the Brady-Castillo boy when another piercing voice rang across the room.

This time, it was Jillian the one making the scene, clearly intoxicated and seemingly taking a page out of Mei’s book judging by the amount of threats and profanities coming out of her mouth. As much as she wanted to feel sorry for her old friend considering the terrible cards life had played her, there was a secret part of Elaine that couldn’t help but feel relieved that she had extricated herself out of the situation when she did. When Roddy had broken up with her, with no warning, it had left Lanie feeling destroyed. Jillian’s presence, with her happy relationship at the time and her budding pregnancy, had only served as a bitter reminder of what the blonde had lost. She had found herself resenting the redhead more and more with each passing day, until she finally decided to burn all the bridges that could potentially trigger her in one way or another. And although she felt guilty about severing ties when she heard about Jill’s hardships, the redhead’s current behavior was a sign that Lanie had done the right thing. She had her own messed-up life and an infant daughter to worry about. Getting sucked into Edenridge drama of any sorts would be counterproductive in her quest for self-betterment.

Next thing she knew, Jillian was name-dropping Roddy in her rant, and Lanie immediately felt herself tense up. It was one thing for Jill to go around being angry at the world (and rightfully so). But it was another thing if she tried to use the innocent Roddy as a punching bag, because this would mean that Lanie would get herself involved. That, of course, would not be in anyone’s best interests.

Everything was so tense right now. Everyone was on edge.

And it wasn't like Marco didn’t understand it. He was feeling similar emotions. But he felt somewhat disconnected by the strife a lot of people were feeling. Lanie had Decky Boaz being here, Roddy, Roddy’s being blamed for that Alison Davies audio, especially since it was his surname that was showcased, and just...everything else. And then there was Jillian O’Brien, who Marco could only surmise was drunk.

But then there was Marco. He felt like he didn’t really belong here, not really. The only reason he was here was that Danny more or less forced him to come. And even then, he couldn’t think of a genuine reason why he was here, but he knew why he was staying. 

[color=b8860b][i]For her.[/i][/color] His eyes went to Lanie. She needed him more than ever.

As they would both watch Danny, Roddy, Jill, and that Kylee Grimm girl leave the gym, there was a part of Marco that was relieved. It wasn’t so much for him, but for Lanie. The ease that the absence of their forms would bring had to be at least something, right? But then he thought about those numbers and if those four were getting heated over something and then they left, what if they were onto something?

[color=b8860b]“Maybe...we should follow.”[/color] His suggestion came after several moments of being silent. He kept his eyes on Lanie. He understood that what he suggested was practically asking her to do something that he was assuming she didn’t want to. 

But deep down, the young man also knew that he wouldn’t leave her side. It didn’t matter how much his legs hurt or were hurting, just because it would be hard for the both of them, didn’t mean they’d have to do it alone. [color=b8860b]“I know you don’t want to, but if I learned anything from this past year, running away from what might hurt you the most will only delay your suffering. You have to face it head-on. Just know that whatever happens, I’m not going anywhere. Sure, I might not be as directly affected, but you have me, Lanes. You have me until you don’t need or want me anymore.”[/color]

Now that the majority of the event attendees had left the gym, Lanie finally felt safe enough to allow a few of the tears she’d been holding back to run down her cheeks. [color=ab42a9]“I’ll always need you, Mac. Always,”[/color] she told him softly, her heart swelling with the immense amount of love and gratitude she felt for her friend.

And like the four that went before them, albeit at a slower pace because Marco’s leg was really starting to give him problems, they went towards the haunted halls of Edenridge. Who knew what ghosts they might find there, but what they both knew was neither of them would tackle it alone.

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