IN YOUR MIND. fezco

interlude - lulu and fezco

INTERLUDE

LULU AND FEZCO

Her mother was gone. She had seen her disappearing in that car for what felt like the millionth time except, now, Lulu knew she wouldn't come back. Not until she could bring their father home. And the young girl was convinced it would never happen.

After standing there, all alone, for a very long time, Lulu walked inside of her house and opened the wine cabinet. She stared at the bottles for a few seconds before slamming the door closed —pouring herself a glass of water instead. She could now hear Rue's words resonating in her brain, these painful words about her drinking.

And she was right. Lulu was drinking too much. It had started that infamous night her father left. She started partying every weekend —alongside Rue, and would get wasted every single time. At first, she would get so drunk she would spend hours vomiting in the bathroom afterwards. Then, she found her limits. She would still end up shit drunk but she wouldn't make herself sick anymore. And, slowly, she started drinking a beer in her bedroom after school. Sometimes, she'd have Rue or Maddy come over, this way she didn't feel guilty about this new and urgent crave for booze during week days.

And, at some point, she didn't even care anymore and it became a habit to drink some alcohol every night. Not necessarily to get drunk but because it was now something that made her feel good.

But, as Lulu was now all alone in her kitchen, she didn't want that in her life anymore. Probably because she hadn't imagined being exposed like this by Rue earlier —making her vulnerable and feeling worthless, but even more so because Rue had gotten the information by Zahia, who most certainly pictured her as an alcoholic.

A soft knock at the front door got Lulu out of her thoughts and she walked all the way to the entrance before opening the door and releasing a long breath she had been holding on to for a long time.

It was Fezco.

She stepped aside to let him walk in and she shut the door with her foot as they both started inspecting one another.

Lulu had red puffy eyes and looked visibly shaken up meanwhile Fezco's face started relaxing now that he was with the girl he grew feelings for more and more every second. Lulu noticed his right hand was sparkled in blood and his knuckles were wounded, therefore knowing he had probably been through hell to fix things up with Mouse and she caught his wrist as they both hugged each other tightly.

"You wanna talk about it?" Lulu asked softly as she pressed her forehead against his.

"Not now," Fezco sighed as he put a strand of Lulu's hair behind her ear, "You?"

Lulu chuckled, getting warmer against his touch, "Not now."

Fezco's lips turned into a soft smile as he hesitantly leaned forward, unsure if Lulu was allowing him to kiss her. She didn't wait long before pressing her lips against his, releasing a soft moan that made the boy shiver all over.

"Wanna get cleaned up?" Lulu asked, "I feel like forgetting the first part of the night."

Fezco couldn't contain his smile and nodded, "Yeah, sure."

Lulu noticed Fezco was more silent than usual but it didn't bother her at all. She liked Fezco for who he was at any moment and if he felt comfortable enough to be there with her after what he had to endure earlier, then she knew he probably felt the same way about her.

They silently got into the bathroom, they both got undressed and they showered together, remaining under the hot water for a long time, relaxing with each other's company. They both loved how easy it was to be with the other person without feeling judged or entitled to a certain behavior.

Lulu, who was known for being cheerful and exuberant, could be calm and somehow insecure around Fezco. Fezco, on the other hand, could be vulnerable and sentimental with Lulu. And, deep down, that's something they had always seeked in their lives. This opportunity to be more than what people knew about them.

And that's when they both knew they were mad for each other.

In Lulu's bedroom, the brunette decided to play some music, settling for Taro by alt-J, before crawling into bed and snuggling in Fezco's arms.

The boy started moving his head to the beat as Lulu stared at him with a smirk and stars in her eyes, "Y'like it?"

Fezco nodded, "Yeah, you always makin' me discover sick songs."

Lulu was about to answer when she was interrupted by her phone buzzing on the night stand.

zahia
staying over at max
see u 2morrow
❤️

And, just like that, Lulu dreaded the next morning, knowing she would have to break the news to her little sister. She sighed and put her phone away before lighting a cigarette and standing near the window.

She was rapidly joined by Fezco who simply hugged her from behind, kissing her temple gently.

"She's gonna be devastated," Lulu confessed, "I wasn't even strong enough to stop her from leaving us..."

Lulu tried keeping her composure, controlling the tears as much as possible but a few pearls rolled down her cheeks and Fezco was quick to react and turn her around, swiftly rubbing his thumbs under her eyes.

And Fezco knew she wasn't crying about her mother's departure. She was crying for Zahia. Because she was terrified at the idea of seeing her little sister be in another depression. When their father had left, Zahia was diagnosed with depression, PTSD and ADHD. The young girl had had therapy —and still had some sessions now, and had finally been able to reach the end of that tunnel this year. And Lulu didn't know if she could be strong enough for the two of them now.

"Want me to stay tomorrow when you tell her?" Fezco asked, pressing a kiss on her forehead.

Lulu shook her head, "Nah... nah, it's okay," she said as they both smoked, "It'll be okay..."

Carefully, Fezco slowly brought Lulu back into bed, wrapping her in his arms as he caressed her face in the tenderest way. She made eye contact with him and, suddenly, her fears vanished. Because, with him, she wasn't in limbo. She could feel her heart beating in her chest, her entire body getting warm on the inside because of the way his eyes felt on her, because his actions showed how much he loved her.

"Thank you," Lulu said in a whisper, "Thank you for being here."

Fezco smiled, "I could tell ya the same thing, y'know."

Lulu cocked her head to the side, lifting her eyebrows, "Why?"

"Cause... you get me. You respect me. And... you don't judge what I do."

"Well... the world's fucked up," Lulu replied, "We all gotta do what we gotta do to survive this shit."

Maybe her mother had disappeared —joining her father in what was now a memory, but right here right now, Lulu was only surrounded by love. And it was all coming from that one man whom she had first been close friends with. But they had both opened up enough to take their masks off and reveal who they truly were and what they really felt all along.

Love.

And, as Fezco was giving a curious glance as he didn't expect Lulu to stare at him the way she did, she pressed her lips against his as a way to show him what she felt, and they both expressed their feelings in the longest kiss they ever shared.

( ... )

that was kind of a filler but i really wanted to write something to reunite lulu and fez after this awful night! i mean i ship my own ship so much... is it bad? ahahah
anyways hope you all enjoyed it !