My probation officer was a bull dog looking woman with a permanent scowl on her face which was the outcome of working the judiciary circuit for many years. Her name was Cassie Grant, a respectable woman whose name was softer than her facial features. Don’t get me wrong Cassie is a great person, doing all she could to help my probationary period breeze by as painless as possible; however, today I was hearing an earful for something that wasn’t my fault.

“You skipped your community service hours yesterday. Do you know how poorly that reflects on you?” She asked rhetorically. I was about to cut in, but Cassie continued.

“When Cathleen informed me that you weren’t down at Hope Services I assumed that you might as well have skipped town. The courts could easily reopen your case and sentence you to doing time in prison for your carelessness.” Cassie scolded.

“It wasn’t my fault!” I managed to cut in, my voice pleading with the truth.

Cassie sighed. “I guess I’m being a little dramatic, but please explain how you missed your hours?” She asked while sitting at her desk.

I took in a deep breath of air while gathering the past two day’s events.

*Two Days Ago*

I raced around the house, looking for my coat I often wore to meet up with either Cathleen or Cassie—my probation officer, for the courts ordered that I meet up with Cathleen twice a week to show her my community service hour’s sheet. The reason this coat was important was because it made me seem professional, and appearances in my situation is critical. I checked and rechecked the closet Tony and I shared. I searched through my drawers and even rummaged in Tony’s drawers, but no such luck. I glanced at the time and sighed. It was currently 10:41 am and it takes me about twenty minutes to make it to Cassie’s office. Letting out a puff of agitated air, I grabbed my purse and keys and headed to my car. I’m sure wearing a simple button up shirt and black washed jeans would be tolerable.

I arrived to Cassie’s office feeling a little irritated and a little on edge. I could’ve sworn that these past two nights someone was peering through the windows. More often than not I saw movements in the shadows, and whether my eyes were playing tricks on me or not, I found myself getting jumpy at the sound of leaves ruffling on the ground or the house doors opening. I blamed my wandering imagination, but I couldn’t help but consider Mike’s warning about Laurel.

Get it together Effie. There’s no one in the shadows, you’re just being paranoid. I scolded myself before walking into Cassie’s office.

“Good morning.” I said cheerily. I saw Cassie glance up with a steady stare. I knew just by the way her eyes didn’t hold its usual warmth that she wasn’t in a good mood.

“You’re late Ms. Harper.” Cassie replied in a stern tone.

“I’m sorry, but I—“ I began but Cassie cut me off.

“I do not tolerate tardiness Ms. Harper. I was explicit about that from day one.” Cassie said in a clipped tone.

“I was looking for my coat so I would look…professional.” I said while mentally slapping myself because I knew that excuse—which was the God’s honest truth—wouldn’t have been accepted easily by Cassie.

“I don’t want to hear about you fashion emergencies. Just be on time, and we won’t have a problem.” Cassie snipped then opened my file, poking through my records before looking at me again. “You can take a seat now.” She added as I quickly sunk down in the leather plush chair.

“Do you have your hour’s sheet?” She asked.

“Yes.” I said after gulping away my anxieties then handed her a manila folder. My community service hours were to spend time with the kids at Hope Services as well as help around the place if anyone asked for it. The organization is basically set up to help the homeless, single mothers, and recovering addicts. The building was located not too far from Lucky’s, so fitting in my work schedule and community service schedule wasn’t that hard to do.

“How are you liking it there?” Cassie asked; her tone lightening up since I first walked in.

“I gotta admit that helping out makes me feel awesome. The other day one of the kids—Gillian had finished reading a story all by herself. Watching the way her eyes lit up after completing the entire story was amazing.” I replied as the tender moment flashed in my mind.

I couldn’t help but think of those many moments spent with Emily as she patiently helped me learn my first words when reading. I was always the little sister, so I never knew how it felt to have helped someone through a struggle, even if it was just a simple task like reading.

“Do you think helping our over there might become a regular routine for you even when you finish your hours?” Cassie asked with a smirk. I could tell her annoyance had fully fled by now.

“Definitely. Those little rugrats grew on me.” I quipped with a small giggle.

“Well that’s good to hear.” Cassie responded with a warm look. She gathered my papers and placed them back in the manila folder before handing it back to me. “It looks like we’re done here. All you have to do is drop this off with Cathleen and she’ll file it with the rest of your legal documents.”

“Thanks.” I replied brightly. “I’ll see you in a few days.” I called over my shoulder and walked back to my car.

I walked back to my car, thanking the lord that everything went swell. It was then I felt an eerie feeling run through my spine, causing the hairs on my arms to stand. I quickly glanced around, but found no one.

You’re being paranoid! I assured myself as I quickly walked back to my car, opening it and locking the door behind me. I even glanced in the backseat to see if anyone was there. Thankfully, there wasn’t anyone there. However, it still wasn’t enough to calm my spiking heart rate.

After dropping my paperwork with Miranda—Cathleen’s assistant, I drove through McDonalds and grabbed lunch. I was meeting with the guys before going to my shift at Lucky’s since I had a few hours to kill, and I didn’t feel like driving all the way home just so I could somehow spook myself. While driving on the main I could feel my car favoring the right side even though my hands were steady on the steering wheel. I continued to drive cautiously when the car pulled to the right again.

Okay, you have got to be kidding me! I yelled to myself.

My car’s alignment felt off, for every time I straightened the steering wheel I’d be favoring the right side of the road, driving dangerously close to white solid line. I managed to make it to the studio without crashing into anything and quickly popped the hood of my car. I peered into it, looking for anything that could have messed with the alignment. I even checked the power steering fluid to see if I needed more, but it seemed fine.

“Something wrong with the car?” I heard Tony’s voice ask from behind me.

“I think my alignment is off.” I answered with a puzzled expression.

Not once in these past thirteen years did I ever have a problem with my car’s alignment. Sure, the struts may have been through hell and even the alternator may have given me some trouble, but never the alignment.

“Since when do you know anything about cars?” Tony asked teasingly with an amused expression crossing his face.

I shoved his shoulder playfully before saying “I’ve been on my own for half my life, so yeah I may have needed to learn about cars so I wouldn’t get stuck in the middle of nowhere as some damsel in distress.”

Tony wrapped me in his arms, bringing me closer to his body. “I find it pretty hot when a girl knows a thing or two about cars.” He whispered huskily in my ear.

“Keep it in your pants Perry.” I replied while rolling my eyes.

“Buzz kill.” He muttered. “So what has the car been doing?” He asked while I pulled out the three bags of food from the passenger side.

“It’s been pulling to the right.” I said while handing Tony one of the bags.

“Maybe we should take it to a mechanic.” Tony suggested.

“Maybe.” I agreed without commitment. I never really spending money on a mechanic if I could do the job myself, but I didn’t have a choice right now. I barely had free time, and if I did I usually spent it with Tony.

---

The guys were in the middle of recording when my phone began to buzz in my purse; I still had it on vibrate due to my appointment with Cassie.

“Hello?” I asked not even taking a moment to check the caller ID. The only people who usually called me were Tony, Cathleen, or Cassie. Vic and Jaime would usually text and Mike rarely communicated with me via phone.

“Effie Harper?” The girl asked with a somewhat pleasant sounding voice.

“Speaking.”

“Hi, this is Alyssa from Hope Services and I was calling to inform you that we are currently overstaffed for tomorrow, so you don’t have to come in.” She told me. Her voice sounded oddly chipper, but I didn’t think much of it.

“Are you sure? I know the kids were gonna do a little skit tomorrow and asked if I could help with the props.” I pressed.

“Well, the thing is that we have a lot of volunteers coming down from the college that there won’t be much for you to do.” Alyssa replied.

“What about my hours?” I asked.

“You’ll still get them even though you won’t be here, considering that this is an inconvenience for you since it’s last minute and all.”

“Okay, so I will come in next week?” I asked.

“Yes, that’ll be perfect. Have a nice day.” Alyssa replied then hung up.

“So who’s ready for their birthday celebration tonight?” Jaime asked as he walked over to me, draping an arm around my shoulders.

“Oh god, is that what tonight’s supposed to be?” I groaned.

“You forgot already? Effie, it’s only been two days since we planned today.” Jaime replied.

“I told you that my birthday isn’t a big deal to me.” I replied while rolling my eyes.

“Well too bad little girl because we’re gonna get you drunk off your ass.” Jaime vowed with a broad smile.

“Great.” I muttered in a deadpan voice.

“Cheer up Effie. We’ll have fun.” Jaime assured as Tony joined us.

“So Hime, why do you have your arm around my girlfriend?” Tony asked playfully, but there was a underlying of seriousness in his voice.

“C’mon Tone, I have Jess.” Jaime said while retracting his arm.

“Yeah you grumpy ass.” I teased, earning a chuckle from Tony. It became our “thing” to mock each other with offensive words, for we were comfortable enough to do so.

“Where are we going for this ‘celebration’?” I asked without any hint of enthusiasm.

“We’re definitely gonna eat dinner at Seaside Restaurant and then we hit that new rock club—what was the name of it again?” Jaime called out to Vic.

“Uh…Karma’s. Austin them went there a few weeks ago and said it was pretty amazing.” Vic answered.

“I like the sound of dinner, but do we really have to go to a club?” I asked hesitantly.

Tony pulled me against his side by wrapping an arm around my waist and kissed the top of my head. “It’ll be fun babe.” Tony said.

The sound of his voice, low and velvety, made me cave in—as usual.

“Fine.” I groaned. “But I do have to work tonight.” I added with a cheeky smile.

“No you don’t.” Mike chimed in with a smirk.

“Uh…yes I do.” I replied.

“I called Lucky this afternoon and told him that it was your birthday, so he gave you the night off.” Mike answered smugly.

“God, you’re an ass.” I mumbled while narrowing my eyes at him.

---

“Tony do you know where I put my black skirt?” I asked while walking out of the bathroom. I had just finished my shower and was starting to get ready, but as usual I couldn’t find what I needed at the moment.

Was I going through Alzheimer’s already?

“No.” He said while entering the room. He was already dressed his usual Key Street attire with a red SD snapback on his head.

I sighed in irritation as I rummaged through the closet again, trying to find anything to wear at this moment.

“Ya know, we can always stay in.” Tony said seductively while wrapping his arms around me.

That sounded wonderful, but I couldn’t just back out of the plans that were made. Jaime and Vic were excited to be hosting this birthday for me; I didn’t wanna pop their happy bubble.

“Tony…” I giggled as he nibbled on my weak spot. “I have to get ready.” I replied; my voice wavering a bit.

“No.” Tony said gruffly, but in a joking manner.

We stayed like that, wrapped in each other’s arms, making out until I remembered I was supposed to be getting ready.

I pushed on Tony’s chest, giving us some distance while saying “I need to get ready.”

“Okay.” He replied while rolling his eyes.

I finally stumbled upon one of my LBD’s I never really wore and paired it with black caged heels. The dress was simple; cut just above my knees and hugged my body to a point where it showed off what curves I obtained over the years. I quickly lined my eyes with black eyeliner and whisked my mascara on.

“You can’t go out looking like that!” Tony exclaimed.

I felt my cheeks flush with insecurities as I quickly glanced at my reflection. Maybe my skin was too pale for the dress, maybe I was still too skinny to try and wear something as provocative as this.

“I can change.” I offered in a small voice.

Tony gave me a sympathetic look as he realized I was feeling insecure. “It’s not that you don’t look good—it’s that you look too beautiful. I don’t think there won’t be a single guy out there tonight who won’t try to get his hands on you.” Tony assured me while placing a light kiss on my nose.

I sighed in relief. “You’re being stupid.” I joked.

“Effie, you don’t see yourself clearly and I’m thankful for that because if you did then you’d leave me in a heartbeat.” He murmured into my hair.

“I love you Tony Perry. So whether you like it or not, you’re stuck with me.” I grinned back at my boyfriend, assuring him.

“Let’s get out of here before I decide to lock us in the bedroom.” He groaned.

The entire night went blissfully well. Dinner was beyond delicious, and the company was great as well. I got to meet Jaime’s girlfriend Jess who happened to welcome me with open arms, saying that she was glad that Tony had finally found someone. The guys talked about their new album and how they feel good about this one. In return, the guys asked me about myself. I gave in and told them how I managed to live without parental guidance. I told them about my adventures from moving state to state; never staying long enough to be recognized and always finding a new temporary home. I told them a little more about Emily. It seemed that being with Tony helped me with opening up. I still had my guard up for the most part, but more often than not I felt my walls slowly coming down; brick by brick. The real surprise of the night wasn’t the fact that the guys got me gifts—even when I explicitly told them no gifts—or the fact that Jaime and Vic paid a girl to give me a lap dance—which happened to be excruciatingly embarrassing—but the big surprise was that I found myself becoming closer with Mike. We actually had a decent conversation and I knew from there that Mike and I would never look at each other as strained strangers, but rather friends. We ended the night by having a few drinks at mines and Tony’s place. Even though I was against the whole ‘birthday’ thing, I had to admit it was probably one of the best nights of my life.

*Now*

“It sounds like you missed your community service because you decided to party the night before.” Cassie cut in with an accusing tone.

“No, I was told by Alyssa that I wasn’t needed that day and that I’d still receive my hours.” I pleaded.

“Fine, we’ll settle this once and for all. I’ll call up Hope Services and speak to Alyssa myself.” Cassie replied sternly and picked up her office phone.

“Hi, I was wondering if I could speak to Alyssa.” Cassie said; still on the phone. “There isn’t an Alyssa? Well I have a client here that swears she spoke with Alyssa the other day and said it’d be fine if she didn’t come in.”

I swear I wasn’t losing my mind. I got a call from someone named Alyssa!

“Thank you.” Cassie said politely then hung up. She then turned to me with a steady glare. “They don’t have anyone with the name of Alyssa working at Hope Services.” Cassie announced.

“I even have it in my phone that I got a call that day.” I said while fishing my phone from my purse. I quickly thumbed down my call log, but found no trace of receiving a call that day.

What?!

“Cassie, I swear I got a call that day. I’m not lying.” I implored with wide eyes.

It was then my mind kept going back to Mike’s warning about Laurel.

No, Effie you don’t understand. I know what Laurel was like; eight months isn’t long enough to reach full recovery…Just consider this as a warning.

I felt my eyes go red as I realized who was really behind all the bad shit going on in my life.

That fucking bitch!

Notes

Damn that Laurel! :3

So I found time to update. Hope you guys are enjoying the story. I've been dealing with some personal problems and literally I'm trying my best not to do anything stupid, so bear with me if I update slow.

Let us know what you think in the comments <3

@lostinthemusic I hope I left you off on a good spot.

Have a wonderful day/night and thanks for reading (: