CHAPTER FIVE
grease - day after sleepover

(a/n, fair warning, this chapter has lots of tension and angst)

Roxy looked around the school grounds for people she knew. Once she concluded that no one she knew was there, she quickly ran across the lawn and into the crowded area of her school. She heard the blast of an engine behind her, a sign that Leo was gone.

She slept with Leo in his car but they woke up late this morning. Instead of coming straight to school, she had him stop by her house so that she could get ready.

He was sort of sweet for that.

Roxy started to relax now, falling in step as she made her way to the front doors of her school. But, the satisfaction of not getting caught did not last.

"Roxanne?" a voice sounded behind her. Roxy jumped and looked at the blonde who came running up to her.

"Jesus, Sandy," Roxy laughed a bit to ease the tension. Sandy didn't return the smile.

"Where were you last night? You didn't come back to Frenchy's," Sandy walked close to Roxy, pelting her with her questions. Roxy grabbed her neck, trying to hide the spots that didn't really get covered by her powder foundation. She just flashed Sandy a quick smile.

"Don't worry, Sandy," Roxy said. "You'll get frown lines."

Sandy stopped walking, frowning as she watched her sister enter the school. Roxy would never stay out late at a place she didn't know. Okay, well, maybe she would. But, something about Roxy felt off. She wouldn't tell if it was just today or since her interaction with Kenickie over the summer, but Roxy was definitely hiding something.

-

Roxy slid into her seat in time for homeroom. She sat in between Frenchy and Marty, both of whom were eyeing her as the teacher spoke.

The chime of the morning announcements sounded over the PA system and Mrs. McGee started to speak. It was then that Frenchy spoke up.

"Where'd you go with Crater Face last night?" She whispered. Roxy glanced at her quickly before responding.

"The less you know the better, French."

"Psst," Marry whispered to Roxy next. The blonde turned towards the Pink Lady. "How was he?"

"Shh!" Roxy blushed.

"Did you let him in your drawers?" Frenchy whispered again.

"How big was his— " Marty got cut off.

"Ladies!" The teacher at the front of the classroom called on them. "Something to share with the class?"

"No, Mr. Wright," Frenchy said quickly.

"No, Mr. Wright," Marty copied the redhead. Roxy just shook her head and crossed her arms.

"Ms. Olsson," Mr. Weight sighed. "Something bothering you?"

"No," she involuntarily rolled her eyes. Big mistake.

"Don't you dare roll your eyes at me," Mr. Weight scolded the blonde.

"I'm sorry," Roxy tried to apologize but Mr. Wright was already writing a red slip to send her to the principal's office.

"I think you know your way," Mr. Weight slammed the paper on Roxy's desk. Since she was already on her way, Roxy purposefully rolled her eyes and left the classroom in a hurry.

She glided down the stairs to the ground floor and threw the piece of paper in the trash. Roxy took this as an opportunity to ditch class.

Walking down the hall to the courtyard, Roxy saw a familiar figure come around the corner. She recognized Kenickie from afar and briefly considered turning around and running the other direction, but she marched on, making it seem like she didn't see him.

Kenickie glanced her way but seemed to be doing the same. When they crossed paths, she said under her breath, "Dick."

"What did you say to me?" Kenickie stopped and turned around.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Roxy turned to face him and stepped closer, making sure to enunciate. "I said dick."

Kenickie grabbed Roxy's arm and yanked her close. He was pissed off.

"I'm the leader of the T-Birds, you better show me some goddamn respect."

"Oh yeah? Like you showed me?"

Kenickie's eyebrows furrowed. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about you kissing me over the summer then banging Rizzo," Roxy spat. Yep, she was still not over that.

"Give me a fucking break, Roxy, that was ages ago," Kenickie threw his head back and rolled it to look at her with an exasperated and expression.

"Ages ago? That was four fucking days ago!" Roxy felt herself getting emotional, but she couldn't help it. Before Leo, she never kissed anyone just for the sake of a hookup. She liked Kenickie. She really liked him.

"Get over it! It was a stupid kiss!"

"Just a stupid kiss? How insensitive are you?"

"It didn't mean anything!"

Roxy's breath caught in her throat. "Didn't mean anything?"

"No," Kenickie firmly stated. Roxy locked her jaw to keep from crying.

"You're right, it didn't mean anything." Roxy could've sworn she saw a hint of hurt in Kenickie's eyes. She didn't care, she wanted him to hurt like she was.

"And I wanna let you know that I'm over it," Roxy shrugged. "I banged it out of my system. You're old news, Nickie. I've got someone new."

"Oh yeah? Who?" Kenickie smirked. He wanted to call her bluff so bad, but the glint of honesty behind her pupils made his heart beat fast.

"I don't kiss and tell," she smiled and started to walk away. Kenickie caught up with her and grabbed both of her arms to stop her. Her back was turned towards him and his lips were grazing her neck.

"Tell me." Kenickie's tone changed to a darker, more animalistic one. Roxy felt useless in his arms. She would give anything for him to hold her like this for real. But her secret could have devastating consequences and she cannot let Kenickie's mind games fool her.

"Nice try, Nickie," Roxy chuckled and turned around. She stood on her tiptoes so that her lips feathered his. Kenickie fought everything inside him to not close the distance between them. This girl was making it very hard.

"But you'll never get it out of me," Roxy spoke, making sure her lips moved against his lightly.

"Give me one reason why I should let you go," Kenickie asked her. Roxy looked up at him with doe eyes. She interpreted his words as why he should let her go from his interrogation, but Kenickie meant it in another way.

"Because it didn't mean anything..." Roxy used his own words against him, and Kenickie had no choice but to loosen his grip and watch her walk out to the courtyard. Once she was out of sight, Kenickie clenched his fists in rage. He knew exactly who Roxy had moved on with.

And Kenickie was not happy about it.

-

Roxy sat on the bleachers by the football field, flipping through a magazine while eating grapes. She was lying down on her stomach, relying on her elbows to keep her up.

It was almost lunchtime, so the midday rush was about to start. As long as Roxy had secured her spot, she should have no trouble.

A figure moved from the corner of her eye and Roxy looked up to see Putzie walking around the bleachers and about to ascend.

"Hey, Putzie!" Roxy waved the blond boy over. He looked up and saw the girl and immediately his face turned white. He stepped down the stairs and ran in the other direction.

Confused, Roxy sat up and watched him run away, but didn't follow. That boy was always odd, maybe it was another one of his bits.

After a moment, while Roxy had her nose stuck in the magazine, two shadows stood over her. She glanced up to see two boys above her.

"Move it toots," one of them, the shorter one, said to her. The taller one made a clicking sound with his mouth and motioned her to scootch away.

"Excuse me?" Roxy glared at them.

"This is our lunch spot," the taller boy pointed to the other and himself. "And you're sitting in it."

"I didn't know where was a sign-up sheet for this corner of the bleachers," Roxy said sarcastically.

"Listen here, this is the lunch spot of the T-Birds. You better scram before this gets ugly," the smaller one said proudly. Roxy doubted they would hit a girl, but make them cry? Probably.

"You wouldn't hit a lady, would you?" Roxy looked up at them with exaggerated puppy-dog eyes. She reached down and grabbed her Pink Ladies jacket that was on the floor. "Especially a Pink Lady?"

"Oh shit!" The smaller boy hit the other guy. "You must be the new girl."

"Yeah, the name's Roxy," she smiled.

"I'm Sonny, this here is Doody," Sony introduced himself. "Sorry about that, we're very protective of our turf."

"I'll say," Roxy closed her magazine and threw it to the side. She remembered that day at Bargain City where Kenickie threatened Leo. It was a gang thing, not just a toxic masculinity thing. Well, that too.

"What're you doing here? Shouldn't you be in the quad with the rest of the girls?" Doody scratched his head with a water gun that he pulled out.

"I like my peace and quiet sometimes," Roxy shrugged. Sonny stretched and looked off into the distance.

"Yeah... I like my peace and quiet too," he said with a smug grin.

"Really? When? I've never heard you quiet for more than a few seconds," Doody responded quickly.

"Hey Fruitcake, you want a beating?" Sonny held up his fist.

"Bring it, Lard-ass," Doody squared his chest. Roxy stood up quickly and pushed the two boys away.

"Alright, alright, no fighting at dangerous heights," Roxy laughed as the two boys did a Road Runner Show routine.

Just then, Kenickie rounded the corner with Danny. Seeing both of them made Roxy sick to her stomach. Her smile faded and she grabbed her jacket and started to walk down the stairs.

"Hey, where ya goin'?" Sonny asked her.

"I'm going to catch up with the girls, I'll see you two later," Roxy smiled at them and continued down the stairs without glancing at Kenickie. It was like he wasn't even there.

With his sunglasses on, Kenickie's eyes never left Roxy until she was out of sight. He slowly chewed on his toothpick, which became destroyed in his mouth after he chewed on it too hard.

"Woah," Danny laughed. "Givin' you the cold shoulder?"

"You don't know what you're talking about," Kenickie mumbled and he pushed Danny up the stairs.

"Hey, I was just sayin'..."

"Well don't say so much," Kenickie teased his friend.

At the top of the bleachers, the boy looked out onto the school grounds where the quad was in sight. He saw a blonde walk across with a Pink Ladies jacket slung over her shoulders. She felt his eyes on her and turned to look at him. Kenickie didn't move, he felt like he couldn't.

Roxy gave him a harsh look and turned and quickly walked away.

Kenickie breathed deeply, unable to recover from earlier. He messed up, but at least her "lover" situation was taken care of.

-

Roxy cleared the quad and walked up to her girl group for lunch. She noticed Putzie with the group, laughing as he stole an apple from Marty's tray.

"You sticky-fingers!" Marty shrieked.

"Here you go, Marty, have my fruit-cup," Frenchy offered her friend.

"Hey girls," Roxy smiled at the group as she sat down.

"Hey Roxy!" Jan shoveled mac 'n cheese into her mouth.

"How's the food today?" Roxy made small talk. She noticed Putzie start to inch away and she locked her jaw.

Not again.

Jan was rating each dish, but Roxy got up to leave suddenly. "Sorry, Jan, I gotta run."

Roxy chased after Putzie until he was on the other side of the school. It was deserted and they were the only ones there.

"Putzie! Slow down!" Roxy called after the boy. He seemed out of breath as he came to a stop.

"What's wrong?" Roxy asked. "You've been jumpin' through hoops to get away from me!"

"I'm sorry," Putzie shook his head and or his hands on his hips. "It's just... complicated."

"Well, un-complicate it then," Roxy approached the scared blond boy. "Why are you running away from me?"

"Because I'm not supposed to look in your direction, let alone be in your presence."

Roxy's heart sank as she watched Putzie hang his head. She placed a hand on his shoulder in comfort.

"Hey," she said to him for his attention. "Who told you that?"

"Forget I said anything," Putzie shook his head.

"No," Roxy caught him before he slipped from her grasp. "I want to know who's scaring my first friend here."

Putzie sighed. "You know who."

After a second, Roxy caught on. Her jaw locked and rage flared in her eyes.

"Why did he do that?" Roxy looked Putzie straight in the eyes.

"I don't know!" Putzie shrugged. He was obviously terrified and confused. "He was so mad. I've never seen him that mad. He told me to stay away from you, or he'd kick me out."

"What the hell?" Roxy sighed. She let go of Putzie and started to walk back to the bleachers. "You stay away from him until I can figure out why he did that."

"Careful, Murdoch doesn't like people yellin' at him," Putzie warned.

Roxy kept walking when she said back, "Well, he has another thing comin'!"

When Roxy arrived at the field, she stood at the base of the bleachers.

"Murdoch!" She called up to the boy. He laid on his back on the seats with his arm over his eyes. At her voice, his head perked up and looked at the girl who had her hands on her hips.

"Come here," Roxy pointed to the ground she stood on. "I need to talk to you."

Kenickie sat up at a painfully slow rate and Roxy was growing impatient.

"Now!"

"I'm comin', woman, I'm comin'!" Kenickie grumbled as he approached the blonde. When he got to the ground, Roxy led him to the other side of a building nearby. She didn't want him to lose his respect, but she deserved a good yell.

"What's this about?" Kenickie held his arms out in confusion.

"Why did you threaten Putzie?" Roxy came out with the question right away.

Kenickie rolled his eyes. "C'mon, Peaches..."

Roxy felt her stomach lurch at the new nickname. Her legs felt weak again, once more. She pressed herself against the wall to put some distance between her and Kenickie. He retaliated by coming closer to her and leaning against the wall with his forearm. He trapped her on the other side with his arm extended and his hand on the exterior of the building.

"I think you know why," he finished his sentence.

"I don't," Roxy glared. "What did he ever do to you?"

"He broke a rule. He..." Kenickie trailed off and looked Roxy in the eyes. "Took something of mine."

The blonde girl chuckled. "What does that have to do with me?"

Kenickie didn't say anything, he locked his jaw in anger and Roxy saw in his eyes that he was holding something back.

"Nickie," she called him by his nickname. He felt weak when she called his name, and that wasn't good. "Are you telling me the whole truth?"

"He broke a rule," Kenickie said once more. Truthfully, Putzie didn't break any rule. Kenickie was just blinded by his rage that he took it out on poor Putzie.

"What rule?"

"He can't have you," Kenickie explained in a low voice.

"What are you talking about?" Roxy was genuinely confused. Putzie broke a rule, the one where he can't have her. But that didn't make sense.

"Don't play dumb, Roxanne," Kenickie gritted his teeth. "I know you're going with Putzie."

Roxy burst out laughing and held her stomach to collect herself. Kenickie watched her in confusion.

"Oh Lord," Roxy laughed. "You think I'm with Putzie?"

"Well, yeah— "

"Wow, you're daft," Roxy snickered. "Putzie's not my new beau."

"Well then who?" This seemed to snap Roxy back to reality.

"I'm not telling you," Roxy glared at the boy in front of her. "And fuck you for doing that!"

Roxy pushed Kenickie away. "You have no say in my relationships! I can go with whoever I want to go with..."

Kenickie was growing angrier by the second.

"I can kiss whoever I was to kiss..."

He didn't like where this was going.

"And I can fuck whoever I want to fuck!— "

Kenickie yanked Roxy's arms and pinned her to the wall. The blonde figured out what he was trying to do and stopped him.

"No, Kenickie, you can't have both," Roxy turned her head away and Kenickie couldn't do anything but bury his face in the crook of her neck.

"You messed up," she added. "These are the consequences."

"Roxy..." Kenickie said against her skin. The feeling of his lips against her neck made her shiver, but she needed to ignore this feeling.

"You chose this," Roxy whispered. "You chose her. Now live with your choice."

Before she could do something she would regret, Roxy pushed the boy away and made her way to the front of the school.

As she passed through the quad, she spotted her sister laughing with Frenchy on a picnic table. She approached the pair and fixed her appearance. She tamed her disheveled hair and straightened the Pink Ladies jacket over her shoulders.

"Sandy," Roxy called out to her sister. She turned to see the Pink Lady standing before her.

"Hi Roxanne," Sandy greeted her. Roxy tried her best to smile back.

"I'm sorry to spring this on you, but I have to go early. Can you catch a ride with someone?"

"Oh! I can take her home," Frenchy eagerly offered. Sandy smiled at the redhead before turning back to her sister.

"Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, I just have to leave," Roxy placed a hand on her sister's shoulder and then left without another word.

Roxy couldn't wait to get on the road with the music on. She lit a cigarette before she turned the engine on and pulled out of the parking lot.

The radio was already tuned to a rock station. Roxy took a breath and decided to go to Hookup Church, the church that was on a hill that overlooked all of Venice City. The one that Kenickie took Rizzo last night.

Roxy parked and turned the engine off to listen to nature. It was quiet here during the day, and empty. It was peaceful. She liked the view, too. She could see her house and the general location of Frenchy's. Rydell's building was further away, but she could still make out the building.

A car pulled up next to hers and Roxy tried to ignore it. That was, until the engine revved. She turned and saw Leo Balmudo in the driver's seat. The passenger seat was empty and he jutted his head to the open space.

Roxy was actually happy to see him. After what happened with Kenickie, she decided to move on. It was just a kiss. And with Leo, she did a lot more than that.

So, Roxy locked her car and hopped into Leo's. He put an arm over her shoulders and the pair rode off into the wooded area near the church. It was the perfect area for... you know what. And it was where Leo took her last night.

Looking at Leo now, Roxy finally had Kenickie off of the mind. She smiled; it was progress.

UNEDITED