Ingrid and Flynn were about to leave for the day when a voice calls out to them, stopping them in their tracks. Lexie, heat rushing to her cheeks, stands there, looking remorseful.

"Ingrid?" Lexie calls out, surprising Ingrid more than anything. She didn't sound...angry, or snotty, for that matter.

"You actually want to talk to me for once?" Ingrid asks, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry for everything. I know we don't always get along, but I'm going to try to be nicer, you know, because of the wedding and all?"

"Wedding? Hunter's wedding?"

"Yeah. Did you not know Grace is my sister? I'm going to be serving in the wedding."

"Huh. I guess it's a small world after all."

"Yeah, it really is. I also want to ask you if it's okay for Flynn and I to go out. I know you're close and all, and-" Lexie is cut off by Ingrid, who simply shakes her head with a smile.

"It's fine, Lexie. Flynn had the same conversation with me earlier. Go out and have fun, you two. Just don't make any babies on my watch." Ingrid chuckles, trying not to show visible disappointment. At least she was cool with Lexie now.

"Did you want me to drop you off at your house?" Flynn pipes up after silently observing them a while.

"If anyone's going anywhere, we're going in my Beetle. I'm not riding in your rusty ol' truck again, Flynn." Lexie jokes, nudging her presumed boyfriend playfully.

"A ride would be nice, as long as it isn't from my dad." Ingrid groans, rolling her eyes at the thought of Shane.

"What's wrong with your dad?" Lexie questions, resting her head on Flynn's shoulder.

"What isn't wrong with my dad? It's a long, complicated story that I just don't feel like telling right now."

"I hope it gets better for you, even though I don't know the whole story."

"Thanks. You would think the man was dying or something, but no, turns out he's just a big, fat jerk."

"That's awful."

"Tell me about it. Shane Armstrong has, from the day I was born, ruined my life."

They start walking to the parking lot, Ingrid telling bits and pieces of the Shane story. When they reach Lexie's car, Ingrid gets in the passenger side, while Flynn hops in the backseat of the light blue convertible. 

"This is really nice." Ingrid grins, buckling her seat belt. 

"What, the car?" Lexie scoffs, checking over her shoulder to make sure that she wasn't going to back into anything before taking off.

"Yeah, I'm impressed."

"Well, my dad does own the dealership, so..."

"Wait, your dad is the Jeff Thomas, from the commercials?"

"Uh, yeah?"

"Dude, I live for those commercials! They're so cheesy, but I can't help but watch them." the blonde gushes, her eyes wide with excitement.

"You can tell him yourself at the wedding. He'll be there, kinda 'cause he's paying for the whole thing and all." the brunette laughs, pulling out onto the side road that went behind the school.

"I think Shane's got that taken care of. The dude's loaded, even if he didn't obtain the money legally."

"Who knows? My dad's a pushover, he probably isn't going to pay if your dad offers to."

"We'll just have to find out in ten days. Oh God, the wedding's in ten days."

"What's so wrong about that?"

"I don't want to have to serve in the wedding. I don't like wearing dresses, and, no offense, Lexie, but your sister chose the ugliest colors for her wedding. Silver and gold? What is this, a Rankin-Bass special?"

"Grace has no sense of style. If it were up to me, I'd have the colors be gold and green. It's more of a wedding scheme to me." Lexie simply replies, somewhat shocking Ingrid in the process.

"You like weddings? I think they're trash." Ingrid snorts, studying the girl next to her. She was unable to read Lexie, no matter how hard she tried.

"Weddings are spectacular. Just watching two people declare their love for each other makes me so happy."

"Are you going to be a wedding planner after high school?"

"You know, I haven't given it much thought, but now that you mention it, it would be a good opportunity to make a career out of something I love."

"Looks like you've got your life figured out. I have no idea what I'm going to do come next May."

"You still have time, Ingrid. I wouldn't stress about it too much."

Lexie pulls into Ingrid's driveway after a few more minutes of driving, putting the convertible in park. Ingrid unbuckles her seat belt, grabbing her backpack. "Thanks, Lexie. I think we're going to be good friends."

"I hope so. You're really funny sometimes, and I could use the laughter sometimes."

Ingrid grins, feeling proud of herself as she exits the vehicle, Flynn hopping into the passenger seat after she gets out. "Bye, guys. I'll see you tomorrow, Flynn. Thanks, again."

"Oh, Ingrid? I can talk to Daniel for you, if you want. I know things didn't end well for you the other night, but it's the least I can do." Lexie smiles, an involuntary smile gracing Ingrid's own lips.

"You'd do that for me?" Ingrid inquires, startled at Lexie's generosity.

"If you want me to."

"I'd really appreciate that, yeah."

"Okay, count it done. Maybe you can take him to the wedding as a date."

"I guess I'll be seeing you tomorrow afternoon for the final fitting?"

"I can give you a ride there, if you'd like."

"I'd love that."

"Great. Let me know when Flynn drops you off tomorrow and we can grab lunch before or something."

"Sounds good to me. Bye."

And with that, Lexie drives off, Flynn waving goodbye as Ingrid stands in her driveway, finally truly happy for once.

A few hours later, Ingrid, home alone as usual, jumps when a knock on the door jolts her out of her trance. She had been watching whatever trashy talk show was on, and, quite frankly, she was immersed in the tasteless drama. The blonde pulls herself up to her feet, making her way to the door to open it.

"If you're here for the rent, my mom isn't home, and besides, you know that..." she trails off, surprised to see Daniel standing there.

"Can we talk?" he asks, a sincere look in his eyes. As much as Ingrid didn't want to let him get the chance to, she was feeling nice today.

"Wow, Lexie sure works quick." she mutters under her breath before adding, "You've got some nerve coming over here after what happened."

"I know you probably don't want to see me right now, but could you just listen? I've been a jerk to you and I'm sorry for that. If I'm being honest with myself, you terrify me. You're so headstrong, and outspoken, and that is the scariest thing to me. I probably shouldn't have kissed you like that. I was still hung up on Lexie, and I guess I still am, so seeing her shove her tongue down Flynn's throat all of a sudden made me act out in retaliation. I also probably shouldn't have asked you to go home with me. I think we're on different levels here, and asking you to sleep with me was uncalled for. You know how Chance and I are, we're just stupid womanizers who are looking for good times. It's just the way we were raised...or, I guess, weren't raised. Our parents have always just let us do our own things, which sounds great in theory, but it actually sucks. Anyway, with all of that being said, I feel terrible for everything and I want to apologize."

"I think we'd be better off as friends, Daniel. What you did back at the carnival just made me not like you romantically anymore. You shouldn't assume every girl wants to sleep with you just because you're an attractive individual. It doesn't give you a pass to act like a grade-A jerk. I know I probably shouldn't forgive you, but it took a lot of guts to come here, and I respect that. If you're looking for forgiveness, I guess you've caught me on a good day. Normally, I would have just punched you in the face and called it a day, but you sounded heartfelt. Most guys would have just moved onto the next girl by now without any form of apology whatsoever. It's nice that you thought it through and came here, regardless of if Lexie sent you here or not."

"Lexie didn't send me here, I came on my own. The carnival's been weighing on my mind a lot recently, and I had to get all of that off of my chest."

"Really? You just earned more of my respect. Maybe one day, you'll redeem yourself completely."

"I'm trying to change for the better, Ingrid. The carnival was a wake up call. I just wish I hadn't screwed things up in the first place." Daniel sighs, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Well, you know what you can't possibly screw up? Being my date to my brother's wedding next Saturday. It would be a good chance for you to redeem yourself, maybe even completely." Ingrid grins, gesturing for him to enter the living room.

"Kinda sudden, but I can roll with it. Are you serving?"

"Unfortunately. Are you going to be okay with seeing Lexie? Her sister is marrying my brother." 

"It'll be rough, but I think I can handle it."

"Good, because we're actually becoming friends now. It's funny how your worst enemy can become your best friend."

"Ingrid Armstrong and Lexie Thomas, best friends? Now that's something I've got to see." he laughs, sitting down across from her in the tattered, old recliner that had been worn down over the years.

"I guess it's kinda something you've got to see to believe. She actually dropped me off after summer school, believe it or not." she responds with a shrug, leaning back against the couch behind her.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Weird, right? I've been having the weirdest day. First, my dad, of all people, brings me to school, which raises so many red flags. Then, I blow up on him and cry to Flynn. Next thing I know, I'm sitting passenger side, chatting it up with Lexie like we weren't at each other's throats just the other day."

"Can I ask, what's the whole deal with your dad? I mean, you clearly don't want him in your life, but why?"

"He murdered some woman he was cheating on my mom with, then fled to some tropical island somewhere."

"Wait, what? Your dad killed someone?" Daniel exclaims, his eyes wide with shock.

"I personally wasn't there, but I'm ninety-five percent certain that it's the reason he disappeared into thin air all of a sudden. Besides, if he can just up and hit my mom for making one little mistake, then I'm pretty sure he's capable of murder." was Ingrid's simple response, not surprised that Daniel was.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know things were that bad."

"Don't apologize. We can't change who we were born to. Shane's going to get justice served, one of these days."

"I sure hope so. Do you have to live with him?"

"Nah, he's staying at the motel. I know 'cause he hasn't set foot in this house, like, ever. He left my mom to raise two kids with a huge house that she couldn't pay for, so she got a lot of jobs after we got evicted. That's how we ended up here, in this cruddy ol' house with a sleazebag for a landlord."

"Is there anything I can do to help? You know we're loaded, I could always get my dad to write your mom a check." he insists, Ingrid shaking her head no.

"You don't have to do that, Daniel. I just want my mom to be able to relax at the end of the day, instead of sleeping maybe three hours or so before heading off to her next job." she sighs, wishing things could be different for at least her mother.

Seemingly, at the mention of her mother, Rachel walks in, a great big smile on her face.

"Mom, you're home early." her daughter marvels, shocked at the sight of her mother. Rachel had at least three hours left on her shift at the diner, so what was she doing home so soon?

"Yeah, but that doesn't matter. I've got some important news for you." the woman gushes, sitting down beside Ingrid.

"Did you get fired? Because I can get a job, if it'll help any."

"No, I didn't get fired, but I did quit. Ingrid, your father is a bad man, but that doesn't mean he didn't owe me alimony."

"What does this mean, Mom?"

"Pack your bags, angel, 'cause Shane bought us a new house!"