The weekend had passed without anything of importance happening on Ingrid's side of things. Flynn had dropped her off at her house, of course, but it was a ride full of uncomfortable silence. After he had left Friday night, she hadn't seen him since. Ingrid was starting to believe that Flynn may have left for good as she poured some milk into her bowl of Lucky Charms, lost in her own thoughts. It was only right for him to do so after she disfigured Lexie's face. Whatever Flynn and Lexie were, if they were anything at all, it must have had some substance for it to affect Flynn enough to stay away from the Armstrong household. This bothered Ingrid as she ate her cereal, hoping that Flynn wouldn't make her walk to school on an uncomfortably humid morning. It didn't surprise her that Daniel turned out to be a jerk who just wanted a one night stand, but it still hurt regardless. She had pined after him since eighth grade, and finally getting her chance to be with him showed her that good things could happen to her, and they would. But, seeing Daniel in such a state told her otherwise. Was she a bad person for turning him down? She definitely wasn't ready for that kind of intimacy right now, especially with the wrong person. You're overthinking this. Chill out and finish your cereal. She shoves the last spoonfuls of cereal into her mouth before gulping up the remainder of the milk in the bowl, trying not to think about the inevitable. 

Walking into the living room, Ingrid slings her backpack over her shoulder before heading outside, no sight of Flynn anywhere. It served her right for attacking Lexie; in fact, it all made sense now. Flynn liked Lexie, and Lexie liked Daniel, but Ingrid liked Daniel, so what kind of sick love triangle was going on here?

Pushing her intrusive thoughts aside, she starts off towards Lakeside High, realizing that Flynn wasn't going to pick her up this morning. If he was angry at her, she'd soon find out when she'd arrive at school. In all the short time she had known Flynn, she had never once seen him raise his voice or lose his temper. Flynn Newfield truly was a rare species of male that seemed to be going extinct every day. Being surrounded by toxic men would do that to you, she thought, scoffing to herself out loud. 

A loud beep drew her into the real world, whirling around to find that she was in the middle of the street, where a sleek new sports car as black as coal was waiting for her, the top down on such a nice morning as this one. On the driver's side sat none other than Shane Armstrong himself.

"Well? Are you going to get in or do I have to drag you in myself?" Shane jokes (or at least, attempted to), waiting for his daughter to get inside.

As much as Ingrid despised the idea of going anywhere with her father, it would definitely be much faster than walking. Walking around to the passenger side, she hops inside, making sure to buckle her seat belt as he takes off without knowing where his daughter was going. Before Shane can get a word in, Ingrid huffs a single sentence: "We're never going to talk about this, ever."

"What a shame. Where were you headed before you stopped in the middle of the road, just waiting to get yourself hit and killed?" he asks, keeping his eyes on the road ahead of him.

"For your information, I was headed to summer school. And if you don't step on it, I'll be late."

"Look at my girl, a tutor. I always knew you had my smarts in that big ol' noggin of yours. That's my Ingrid, alright."

"As much as you try to step up and be a parental figure to me, you're never going to get that opportunity. Even though you're my biological father, you will never be my father figure. You could have stayed all those years ago, but you didn't. You left us high and dry, left us to struggle in poverty all these years. If you had just gotten a divorce and stayed in Lakeside, maybe then I'd welcome you into my life again." Ingrid was near tears at this point, fighting the urge to let them flow before she gets the courage to continue. 

"You don't get the right to just waltz back in here like nothing ever happened. You don't get to insert yourself into my life whenever it's convenient for you. Do you know how embarrassing it was every year for Take Your Dad to School Day, watching everyone else have fun with their dads while I sat alone, wishing I had a dad who didn't abandon me when I was a kid? No, you don't. You had a father figure in your life. You lived in a stable home when you were my age. I didn't get that chance, not by a long shot, and it's all because of you. Don't think I never caught you hitting Mom when I was little, either, because I saw it on multiple occasions. You thought I was stupid then, and you still think I'm stupid now. And no, I'm not a tutor. In fact, I'm the one being tutored, because I'm so stupid, apparently. Thanks for nothing, Dad." she spat, unbuckling her seat belt as they approached the school.

 "Just know that this is the beginning of the end for you. One of these days, you'll be gone for good. And maybe then I'll have the closure I need." were the final words the blonde left with Shane, slamming the door shut after she got out, stalking into the school without turning to look back at her sorry excuse of a father. She hadn't seen his reaction, nor did she want to. For all she cared, he could disappear completely and she'd still be fine. Ingrid despised him, and that was that. Now all she had to do was face Flynn.

Flynn seemed to be relieved to watch Ingrid barge into the classroom, a few minutes late, of course. A few people's eyes gravitate to her, but she wasn't too much of a distraction as they continue their work for the day. She tosses her backpack next to her desk, still thinking about her bitter words to Shane. He deserved it, for all the misery he had put her family through. Adjusting herself in the desk so that she had good view of Flynn sitting next to her, she fiddles with the pencil that had been left on the desk from the previous school day, saying nothing.

"That wasn't cool, what you did back there at the carnival. You may not like Lexie, but that doesn't mean you had to beat her to a pulp." he gently chides, taking the pencil out of her hands so that she would make eye contact with him.

"It happened, and it's over with. Do we have to talk about this any more than we have to?" she grumbles, her voice breaking at the end of her bitter question. Clearly, the one-sided argument with her father had taken a toll on her. 

"Ingrid, what's wrong? Was it something I said?"

"You didn't do anything wrong, you never do. It's me that's the problem."

Ingrid couldn't take it anymore, making a dramatic exit from the classroom altogether. Flynn quickly follows her out into the hallway, stopping her in her tracks.

"What happened? Who did this to you?"

"I'll give you three guesses, and the first two don't count."

"Oh, Ingrid, what did Shane do now?"

And so, Ingrid explained how all her resentment and anger had gathered into one colossal rage, taking it out on her absent father. A sympathetic Flynn embraces Ingrid, who had begun to sob into his shoulder.

"He shouldn't go after you like that. If I were you, I'd cut all ties with him as soon as possible." Flynn suggests with a small smile, trying to get Ingrid to smile too.

"That's what I've been trying to do. It's what I have been doing for the past seventeen years of my life. It wasn't a problem before this summer. Now, he's plaguing my life with his stinky cologne and ugly suits." Ingrid groans, sliding down against a locker to the cold concrete floor beneath her, Flynn sitting beside her.

"Maybe you could take legal action. I don't know how hard it would be to file a restraining order on him, but it's worth a try."

"Knowing Shane, he'd find a way to circumvent it."

"Well, even if you don't decide to file a restraining order, just know I'll be here for you."

"Thanks. You're always comforting me."

"It's what I do best."

"I know this sounds completely awful, but sometimes, I wish I never had a dad. No matter how hard I try, I'll always be connected to that jerk." she murmurs, turning her head to look at him.

"No, it's totally valid for you to feel that way. I don't know what you've been through, but if I were in your shoes, I'd probably feel the same way." he simply replies, putting his hand over hers.

"Why am I always surrounded by garbage people? Daniel only wanted me because he thought I was easy, Shane's only here to cause trouble, and Lexie makes me want to slam my head against a brick wall repeatedly. But with you, it's different. You're so sweet, and you put up with me even though most people would have ran by now. You're a great guy, Flynn Newfield, and any girl would be lucky to have you."

"Even Lexie?"

"As much as I hate to admit it, yeah, even Lexie."

"I'm glad to finally get the Armstrong seal of approval. Who knows, maybe Lexie and I will end up together?"

"You love her?" Word by word, little by little, it finally set in. Flynn would never settle for her. How stupid was she to believe that he actually cared for her in a romantic sort of way? Of course he'd want to be with Lexie. They were practically made for each other. It just made sense; sense that Ingrid had just picked up on now, once she had let her guard down and had started falling for Flynn.

"I wouldn't say I love her, but there's something there, at least I think so. You know, she's not so bad once you get to know her. She's actually really sweet." 

"So sweet that she makes me want to get run over by a bus, repeatedly."

Flynn chuckles, rising to his feet. "Thanks for being cool with this. I know you and Lexie don't really get along, but as long as you're okay with it, I'm okay with it too. Come on, you know people are going to start rumors."

"If they start some rumors, I'm going to start my foot up their-"

"Ingrid!"

"Right, sorry."

Maybe it was good that Flynn wanted to be with Lexie instead of her. She was impulsive, impatient, and, worse of all, she was in love -- no, like -- with a guy who just wanted to be friends, and there was nothing she could do about it. She could change Daniel's mind, just maybe. But that meant she'd have to sleep with him, and she wasn't ready for that kind of pressure now. The one time she had opened up to someone, really let herself feel some sort of emotion she had never felt before, it was all for nothing. Maybe she was just stupid, like Shane evidently thought she was. Nobody wanted to be with a girl who had baggage in the form of daddy issues. Ingrid had never felt so low in all of her seventeen years of life.