What She's Doing Now (Sequel to The Great Pretenders)

Liar

By the Sex Pistols

Lie lie lie lie liar you lie lie lie lie

Tell me why tell me why

Why d'you have to lie

Should've realised that you

Should've told the truth

Should've realised

You know what I'll do

Charlie was stunned. She looked at her mother and asked "Is this a joke?"

Lucy closed her mouth and shook her head "No," she said huskily.

"This has to be a joke," she turned to Matt who appeared to be speechless after his last statement. "I mean, you two have got to be joking. Because there isn't any way on Earth my mother would ever keep something that big from me." She turned to Lucy, pleading in her voice "Right?"

Lucy sighed "I told you it was complicated."

"Complicated," Charlie repeated "Lying isn't complicated. It's lying. Why would you do that to me?"

"I was young," Lucy began "It made sense at the time."

Charlie turned to Matt "And you were okay with that?"

"Okay with what?" he replied finding his voice.

"Okay with her not telling me you were my father...okay with walking away from me before I was even born."

"He didn't know," Lucy interjected "He just...I decided...It....He just found out. I didn't tell him."

"Ohhhh, okay then," Charlie said sarcastically "That makes it all better then. You LIED to both of us."

The tears that Lucy had been holding began to stream and Matt's heart broke a bit. He resisted the urge to wipe them away. "You're right," was all Lucy could manage. "But I did it because I was trying to do the right thing. For me and for him."

"And what about me?" Charlie countered.

"I never thought..."

"Thought what?" Charlie asked "That I'd find out? That he'd find out? Oh wow, this all makes sense. He sees me on accident and then he pops up. That's why he's here."

Matt looked uncomfortable when Charlie turned to him and asked "That is why you're here right? Because you think you owe me something after all these years? Let me help you out. I don't want anything from you."

"That's not why I'm here," he insisted.

"Charlie, I made a mistake," Lucy said wiping her tears and reigning in her wavering voice.

"I'll say," Charlie said sarcastically.

"Don't talk to your mother that way," Matt said sternly, his first attempt at being parental to a teenager.

She smirked in his direction"So you're going to start telling me what to do?"

"No I'm not trying to tell you what to do. I'm trying to make you respect your mother. You know, the fucking woman who took care of you all this time. The person who gave you life...a comfortable existence...freedom to be whoever the hell you want. Seems like a fucking no brainer to me but apparently you need some help with that one.."

Charlie shook her head "She's also the woman who lied to you and me for 15 years."

"Charlie I'm sorry. I never meant for this to hurt you."

Charlie laughed angrily "No, you didn't. I believe you. You meant for me never to know."

"I can't take it back," Lucy replied "I would if I could."

Charlie looked at them both and threw her hands up in frustration "I'm out of here."

"Wait," Matt said calling after her but realizing that he had no authority here, not really.

She ignored him and walked in the direction of the door grabbing her messenger bag on the way out, slamming the door.

Matt turned toward Lucy "Are you going to go after her?"

Lucy shook her head "She's not going far."

"How do you know?" he asked curiously. She moved her arms across her chest, running her hands up and down her upper arms. It was a nervous gesture, he realized now. He took two large steps in her direction being drawn to comfort her.

"Chris lives down the street. She'll head there. That's always where she goes when she's upset."

"Who is Chris?" he asked hoping it wasn't another jackass he'd had to manhandle.

"He's her best friend."

"So we wait?" he asked before pulling her into an embrace. Just a soothing friendly hug after such a scene.

She laid her head against his chest. "You don't have to wait here. I'm sure you need to go home and fix things with Val."

He chuckled softly and she heard it rumbled in his chest "Remember what happened the last time you told me I didn't have to stay and take care of your hurt feelings?"

She looked up at him, her blue eyes shining at the memory "My kid just figured out I lied to her for years and hates me..and probably you...and your marriage is falling apart...This is so not the time to think about sex, Sanders."

He smirked at her "My kid too. And I didn't say it. You did."

She laid her ear back to his chest.

She was content for the minute to forget that she was in another woman's husband's arms and that her daughter may never forgive her.