ROBBY KEENE'S EYES KEPT WANDERING BACK to his girlfriend, wondering why she has been ignoring his smiles or the waves he would gesture to brighten her day. Typically, Lanie would smile and reciprocate his actions, but today, she was completely ignoring him and Robby was getting worried.
Lanie consistently tried to wipe away the stray tears that threatened to stain her cheeks and luckily, nobody noticed her actions. She was concealing her pain and grief, masking her emotions with a happy smile. She was able to fool her fellow teammates.
But that was until Tory snuck up on Lanie.
"Lanie, what's up with you? Don't say there's nothing wrong because I can tell— holy shit, are you okay?! Why are you crying?" Tory exclaimed, her eyes widening at the sight of Lanie. Lanie told her to keep her voice down and luckily, nobody heard their conversation when the young Capuletgue pulled her friend to a sheltered corner.
"Whatever I tell you, promise me that you will not tell Robby, okay? I just don't feel like talking to him right now," Lanie pleaded, her voice splintering from frustration, "please."
"Do you really think I will do that? Trust me, the next time I talk to Robby, it's going to include my fist when I figure out what he did to you."
"Have I ever told you that I love you?"Lanie said, forgetting momentarily why she was upset, but that sadness resurfaced by the thought of Robby.
"Yes, many times," Tory said in a monotone, but with a smile. "So what did he do?"
"With all of the information I gathered, and what I heard from a reliable source was that Robby is cheating on me." Lanie saw the way Tory's face was emitting pure rage and before she could go off on her supposed boyfriend, Lanie continued.
"Apparently he has been seeing this other person named Vanessa. Dammit Tory, I don't know what to do." Lanie's hands went up to her face and she hid in them, feeling embarrassed, betrayed, and used.
"Do you want me to kick his ass? I really would, Lanie and I will do it right now."
"No, no, don't do that, Tory. I can barely admit it myself, so I'm just going to need some space for a while." Tory stared at the girl sadly but reluctantly nodded her head, not wanting to go against Lanie's wishes.
"Okay, but if you need anything, you know where I work now." Tory had only told Lanie what her new job was. Tory knew that Lanie wouldn't be judgmental and understood the work she had to do in order to keep her family on their feet.
Considering it was ironic that Lanie and Tory came from completely different income backgrounds, that didn't deter the Capuletgue girl from deciphering who her friends were.
