Thank heaven for small mercies, Rory thought as she realized that she was finally home alone, since her parents had gone out to make the final check on the wedding arrangements.

She called up the band’s office again, asked for Don, and once again he was unavailable. This time, she left her cellphone number and asked the receptionist to make sure that he got the message. There was very little chance that he would—especially since Rory didn’t state the purpose of the call—but all she could do was be hopeful.

The next morning, she decided to head out and go to a quiet little chapel that she had always liked when she was a child. If nothing else, I can pray for Lizzy. Maybe the gods above would listen to that, at least, since I rarely pray for anything.

After praying, Rory spent a few hours wandering around the old places she used to frequent, the places where she had done odd jobs to make ends meet. It was no surprise to her that there was barely a positive memory to be evoked. Besides, with every passing moment, Rory knew that she had to talk to her father about helping her out with money.

I could wait until the wedding day when he is happy and hopefully intoxicated.

As she made the long walk back home, Rory rehearsed the speech again and again in her head. She couldn’t be overly sweet or too meek. Sure, she desperately needed financial help, but she didn’t want to beg for it either. Rory knew her mother would do her best to make her grovel. Anything she told her father would certainly reach her mother’s ears. That’s just how it was. Especially since, in this case, money was involved.

Rory entered the house through the kitchen door and her mother was standing at the counter, preparing lunch. Good, I am famished, Rory thought. The long walk in the LA heat had exhausted her and she just wanted to put her feet up and laze around on the couch. But for now, the only option was a proper meal on a dining table.

“What are you cooking, Mother?” Rory asked in her most cheerful voice. Her mother remained silent at first, and then she turned and nodded to the living room.

“I think you should head in there first.”

Rory wondered what was going on. Did I do something else now? Why is she being so serious? Rory cautiously made her way to the living room, all kinds of possible situations going through her mind. She hated being this clueless.

Her voice got stuck in her throat as she entered the living room.

“Lizzy!” She let out an excited whisper. Lizzy sat on the couch, looking disheveled and distraught. It looked like she hadn’t slept for days or had even taken a bath for that matter.

“What…? How…? Lizzy, how are you?” Rory rushed to hug her tight. The relief that she felt completely overwhelmed her.

“I’m okay. I guess,” she replied meekly, not sounding anything like the chirpy Lizzy that made her way to the bookshop every morning. “I got your message, Rory, and once Mickey kicked me out, I had nowhere to go. I didn’t know anyone in LA, so I… so I came here.” Lizzy tried not to break into tears. “I hope your mother doesn’t mind. She didn't look very pleased to let me in.”

“Don’t mind her. She’s just stressed with the wedding and all that,” Rory lied, clearly knowing that her mother had probably judged the hell out of Lizzy. “The important thing is that you’re okay and that you’re here. I came to LA to find you, Lizzy, and that’s all I wanted to do. To make sure that you’re safe.” Rory smiled, but Lizzy didn’t.

“I am stupid, aren’t I, Rory? I should’ve just listened to you and not let my stupid little head do the thinking.”

“Don’t say that, Lizzy, you are not stupid,” Rory said.

“I am, Rory. I fell for a guy who’s a jerk. I fell for his words and his promises and left everything behind for him. This guy used me and once he was bored, he threw me away. What else am I if not a fool?” A single tear slid down her cheeks and Rory quickly wiped it away.

“Lizzy, my darling, we all make mistakes. I have too and so has everyone else. Don’t beat yourself up over it.”

“But why do I make the worst mistakes? Why do I do things even when people who care about me warn me against them?” Tears were streaming down her face.

Rory wanted to ask her what happened, what Mickey had done, but she thought it best to avoid that for now as Lizzy seemed to be in a very fragile state of mind.

“Lizzy, the important thing is that you are here now, safe, unharmed, and before long we’ll be back in Montcove where we can continue our lives as if none of this ever happened.”

Lizzy broke down again.

“What will I ever tell my mom? How will I ever face everyone else back home?” As the realization dawned upon her, Lizzy was falling apart. “I’ve lost everything, Rory.”

Rory gently patted her head and held her close.

“You’ve lost nothing, Lizzy. You have me and I am sure that your mother will forgive you. You should have seen how worried she was. I think that she’ll be very grateful that you’re back. Besides, I don’t think many people back home even know that you’re here in LA.”

Lizzy wiped away her tears and sat in contemplation, looking down at the floor.

“You really think so, Rory?”

“I know so, Liz. Everyone cares about you a lot—most of all, your mother. The fact that you’re safe will be more than enough for her. In ten years, we’ll all look back on this silly thing and laugh.”

A slight smile came upon Lizzy’s face. Rory knew that she’d have to help Lizzy get over all of this and leave this mess behind.

“Let’s get you cleaned up, Lizzy. My mother will have a fit if she sees you walking around dressed like this,” Rory laughed.

She took Lizzy up to her bedroom and gave her some clothes to wear. She decided to draw a bath for Lizzy, but then stopped as she didn’t want Lizzy lying in a tub full of water and doing something stupid. She can take a shower, she decided. Lizzy did take a long shower, as if trying to wash all the filth of this city and the memories of the last few days off of her.

“You were right, Rory,” Lizzy said as she stepped out of the bathroom. “LA is not that great. I mean, I had always wanted to come here and go to places where celebrities hang out, walk down Sunset Boulevard and go to all the clubs, but honestly, it's not all that fantastic.”

Rory was glad that Lizzy had come to this realization. If nothing else, then at least this incident would make her more mature.

“Let this wedding be over. Just one more day to go and we’ll be back in Montcove. There’s nothing in this plastic city for you or for me. We’re happy where we belong.” Rory smiled at her friend.

“What would I ever do without you, Rory? You really are the big sister I never had.” Tears welled up in Lizzy’s eyes and Rory hugged her, touched by the warmth in her words.

“You’ll do fine without me. You’re a very intelligent girl and from here on, I am sure lots of good things will happen to you.”

“You have always been so sweet to me and what did I do to you in return…” Lizzy left the sentence half-finished. “I’ll be better, Rory. I promise. I will make this up to you. I owe you big for being there for me.”

“Lizzy, you don’t owe me anything. That is what friends… that is what sisters do for each other. We stand by each other and we stay together,” Rory said gently.

“Aww. You’re going to make me cry again.” Lizzy embraced her once more.

“What a mutual appreciation society we’ve got going. Let’s quickly head downstairs and get something to eat. I’m famished and I am sure so are you. If we’re late, then my mother won’t serve anything to us.”

Lunch was a rather quiet affair. Rory’s parents had already eaten and were too busy with making last-minute phone calls for Tara’s wedding, and for that Rory was thankful. Had it been a regular day, her mother would’ve asked a zillion questions about Lizzy and why she was here.

Lizzy and Rory ate in silence. After lunch, she and Lizzy decided to laze around and watch TV. Though Rory asked her if she wanted to go out and see more of the city, Lizzy refused.

She’s changed so much. This experience has transformed her, and maybe it will be all for the good. Maybe she will mature and use her potential and do something productive, Rory smiled to herself.

They went for a short walk in the evening around the neighborhood and it was then that Lizzy opened up.

“I really thought Mickey meant every word he said. He looked into my eyes and told me how special I was, how he saw a future for us, and how I was so different from the fake LA girls. I believed him when he said he was falling for me. Every time we were close, I felt a moment between us,” Lizzy said.

Rory’s heart sank when she realized that this was pretty much what Arsen had said to her. Is this what these rockstars do to unsuspecting girls? Make them believe they are unique? As bad as she felt at being deceived by Arsen, Rory was relieved that she hadn’t fallen for him. Or fallen for him as badly as she could have.

“I mean when he flew me to LA in his private jet,” Lizzy continued, ”I thought I was special. I didn’t think he would do so much for someone he didn’t like a lot. But then instead of taking me to his house, we went to a hotel. I mean, it was very luxurious and all that, and I loved it at that time, but I didn’t realize that maybe he doesn’t want to show me his house.”

Lizzy paused for a moment.

“Then he kept coming and going and for the most part, I was sitting all alone in that hotel suite. He returned with a whole lot of drugs and some friends, and all of them were girls. I still didn’t get alarmed. I mean he was still making eyes at me and I believed him.”

“I was reluctant to do hard drugs with him, so he gave me a joint instead. Not to mention that we were drinking nonstop. And then one of those girls, out of the blue, just kissed me. Can you believe it, Rory? Now that I think of it, I think it was Mickey’s idea. I tell you that man has some really weird sexual fantasies. Ugh, I feel dirty just thinking about it.” Lizzy made a face.

“He took me to the clubs where we sat in VIP areas. He ordered bottles of Cristal for me, but I didn’t realize that he was just playing me. He just wanted to get in my pants. Most of the time, he was too drunk and too limp to do anything,” Lizzy snorted.

“I liked him, Rory, but I didn’t want to sleep with him or anything. At least not right away. But last night, he was drugged up and was behaving like an animal. He tried to force himself on me. I pushed him back. Then he was trying to get me drunk, but I was getting a bad vibe and refused. It was then that he lost it and started abusing me. Calling me names I can’t even repeat. It was then that I saw the real Mickey.”

“Then he just stormed out of the suite and even told me to foot the bill for the hotel. I was so scared of him and of the fact that I literally had no money. I mean, he had promised to take care of me, and then he suddenly bailed. That’s when I finally saw your message.” Lizzy stopped walking and held Rory's hands.

“I cannot tell you how relieved I was to know that you were here for me. I spent literally the last dollars I had on the taxi ride to your parents’ house.”

“Lizzy. Stop thanking me. I’m glad that you let it all out and I’m glad that you’re over Mickey, that bastard. Let’s just leave this episode behind and pretend it never happened. Your secret is safe with me and no one else needs to know what you’ve been through. We are never going to talk about this, okay?”

The relief was visible on Lizzy’s face. She was almost smiling like she always used to. Rory was disgusted, though she tried her best not to show it. She wanted to kill Mickey. She had always known that he was a douchebag, and the way he had treated Lizzy made her furious.

“These celebrities are like that. All of them. I bet his buddy Arsen is also that way,” Rory remarked.

“I didn’t meet him much. He is a quiet sorta guy, but Arsen doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who would make moves on a woman,” Lizzy said.

“Oh, you don’t know the half of it.” Rory laughed sarcastically. “But let it be. All this is in the past. Just one more day in this godforsaken town, Lizzy, and we’ll be back home, running our little shop.” Rory looked away to the horizon. The thought of being back on the island cheered her up.

But before that, she had to ask her parents for money. It will just have to be tomorrow. At least they’ll be in a good mood.

As Rory and Lizzy got back to her parents’ house, they were greeted by Tara.

“Oh hello. Look who it is,” Tara chuckled. The three faces in the living room turned to look at the two girls.

“What are you doing here? Don’t you have some bachelorette party to throw?” Rory replied coldly.

“Oh, that already happened last week and it was such a blast. Today is my last day as a bachelorette and what better way to spend it than in the house where I grew up and with the people I love the most.”

Rory couldn’t help but roll her eyes as she saw her parents melt at Tara’s words. She quickly leaned in to hold their hands with all the love in the world depicted on her face.

“You are the best daughter a mother can ask for,” her mother said to Tara. Rory couldn’t remember the last time she had seen her mother this emotional.

“Paul is a really lucky guy to get a wife like you,” her dad added. Yeah, real lucky. She’d sell him and his dog in a heartbeat if it served her purposes.

“Dinner will be served in some time, so you girls make sure that you are downstairs for it,” her mother said to Rory. Clearly, in this lovely family moment, she didn’t have a role.