What. Happened. [Lexi TAG Anderson]

[Alexia Dashwood-Dune]

The dull thump-thump-thumping coming from the next room woke Lexi up. It couldn't be her twin. That girl hated techno with her life. So who was listening to that God awful noise people think could pass off as music?

Raising her head off the pillow she had stuffed her head in the night before, she turned to her side and was pretty certain she wasn't alone and she wasn't in her own room. For one, the walls were covered with Pink Floyd posters, cover slips from bands like Metallica, Audioslave and The Scissor Sisters and some very questionable posters of girls in very weird poses and backgrounds.

She was in a boy's room. Or a very angry lesbian's room. Either way, neither was what Lexi wanted to be the answer to what she had done the night before. It was too uncharacteristic of her to have spent the night over at someone else's place on a school night let alone someone who apparently slept in the buff.

Lifting up the sheets covering the person beside her, she had to use that hand to cover her gasp as the sheets fluttered noiselessly back down to rest on the boy's very well-sculpted back. She poked him on the shoulders several times until he stirred and she blew out a huge sigh of relief when she realised that it was someone she had known pretty well from band camp.

"Holy crap, Hunt!" she exclaimed before the blond boy grinned and pulled her down for a kiss. She shoved him off her. "Please tell me we didn't do anything last night!" she squeaked out in horror. The oversized t-shirt she had on kind of gave her the idea that something *did* happen. Which sent her reeling and blabbering before Oliver Hunt, the aforementioned blond boy, cupped a hand over her mouth and asked her to shut up.

"Dash, nothing happened. You just crashed on my couch. I brought you up and changed you because you'd spilled something on your dress and you looked way too tired to move." He looked at her expectantly with an unmistakable Hunt grin. She looked at him while she hyperventilated which calmed down a bit after she heard his explanation. She grabbed the hand over her mouth and pulled it down. "Why did I look way too tired to move last night and what did I spill?"

Hunt licked his lips and chuckled while he shook his head lazily. "You were actually drinking and-"

"NO!"

"Relax! You only had one shot of tequila. You...you're kinda a lightweight, baby girl." Hunt called every girl baby girl so Lexi didn't think too much of it. Her hyperventilation over once more, she buried her face in both her hands and sobbed dryly. "Oh my God...I didn't do anything stupid did I?"

"More stupid than usual?"

With a punch on the arm, Lexi was about to launch into a rant but Hunt stopped her before she went too far and reassured her that the only stupid thing she did was get drunk in the first place. Why did she drink?

"Well, you were babbling about a puppy named Mew."

Lexi looked at him questioningly. "Say what?"

"Yeah, you were going on and on about how cute his eyes got when they went all droopy and how he follows behind a gorgeous redhead cheerleader. I automatically assume it's a puppy. Though Mew is a weird name for a puppy...don't you think?"

Heat rushed up Lexi's cheeks as she realised that Mew wasn't a puppy. It was Bartholomew Fischer. The boy who had unknowingly shattered her heart into pieces and further grinding it into powder by getting on with a rather hot cheerleader who was associated with Sloane Taylor and Tyler Durnham. Of course she knew Bree Marcus' name but why would she want to mention the name of the girl who had so easily seduced Mew into liking her with her looks and popularity and redheadedness. Well, that was what Lexi thought anyway.

"Dash...Dash you with me?"

Blinking away what seemed to be confusion from her eyes, she looked at Hunt and her face fell in disappointment. "Thanks for saving me...you didn't have to." She slipped off the bed and looked around for her dress. "Just keep the shirt, D. I'll get you my sister's pants. Just chill. Stay in bed a bit."

For a total bad-ass, Hunt was really sweet when it came to Lexi since they had known each other for quite some time. It wasn't like he was into her or anything. Even if he was, he couldn't do anything about it since he knew her history with the boy she labelled as her soulmate. He of course didn't know Mew was that boy since Lexi did a good job hiding his identity...at least up until yesterday. When he returned to the room with a pair of ripped jeans, he smiled at Lexi's slumped form on the edge of the bed.

"Come on, D. It's just one night of debauchery. You'll get back on track in no time." Hunt reassured her.

"I already called a friend of mine...he'll be coming to pick me up to go to school. Thanks Hunt..." she pulled the jeans from his grasp and slipped it on, pulling one sleeve of the baggy blue t-shirt up her slender shoulders. Hunt nodded and handed her her belongings. "Don't want you getting lost again." He joked.

Lexi smiled before bumping lightly against him. "Thanks Hunt." She said again. She walked out of the apartment and down the three flights of stairs only to find Anderson already waiting for her at the lobby. "Hey...I didn't know who else to call..." she said softly.

[Anderson Clark]

Anderson stood impatiently in the lobby of some strange apartment building for a reason he wasn't quite sure of. Lexi had texted him asking to pick her up here, and all Anderson knew was that it was Oliver Hunt's place.

Oliver.

Anderson never felt comfortable when Lexi would talk about her older, cooler, and much more musically inclined friend Oliver. All of her stories seemed to glorify the boy much more than Anderson liked to hear, and he didn't trust any guy that was that much older than a girl. Especially now that he was in college and had an apartment.

Which led Anderson to wonder why young Miss Alexia Dashwood-Dune was at this odd place at this odd hour in the morning anyway. She was a good girl, and she would never do anything crazy like stay over at a college boy's place, would she? Anderson couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of jealousy at the thought.

The sound of footsteps on stairs interrupted the downward spiral of Anderson's thoughts, and the words that came from Dash only managed to bother the boy more. Guilt was written all over, and Anderson wasn't sure what to say. What came out was a gentle “No problem,” but it was a problem. Anderson was worried about his friend. She didn't look great, like she had a pretty rough night, and she was wearing a shirt that seemed much to large and masculine for her. Her own clothes were clutched tightly to her chest. Anderson's jealousy flared as he realized what the girl must have done, and he had to turn away in the hopes that Dash wouldn't notice. He started out the building towards the car, moving quickly, and failing to hold the door for Lexi as he normally would have done.

“Let's get to school, Alexia.”

[Alexia Dashwood-Dune]

Lexi didn't notice how Anderson was acting up until the car. He didn't open the door like he usually did for her. It was the smallest thing that she picked up on but it was major in making her realise how it must have looked to him. Her dress from last night was in her hand with the little string bag. She was obviously wearing a boy's shirt and she just came out of an older boy's apartment. Even to her everything looked bad. And this was Anderson.

Strapping her seat buckle, she looked out the window, not knowing how to start the conversation that was going to happen whether she wanted it to or not. She bit her lower lip as she considered her options in this situation. One thing was, she wasn't at fault. It was a harmless night and nothing happened. Lexi trusted Hunt to tell her the truth and nothing he said sounded untruthful. So it was innocent. But there was still the whole going out and getting drunk thing. Anderson wasn't likely to take that too kindly.

After several minutes of silence and debating, Lexi sighed and twisted in her seat to turn to Anderson. "Nothing happened." She squeaked. She cleared her throat and repeated what she had said earlier with a little smile. "Hunt just brought me home after I...funny story actually." Nervous chuckle. "Turns out I can't really hold down my alcohol and...it sounds worst than it really was, really. I mean last night didn't mean anything. You know that right?" Lexi reached over and touched Anderson on his shoulder. "Anderson..." her voice softened. "Nothing happened last night."

[Anderson Clark]

“Alcohol?!?!” Anderson's voice was filled to the brim with shock. He hadn't even thought of why his friend might have slept with some guy, but of course alcohol was the cause. He had seen enough movies and school films to know that. “Come on, Lexi, you know better than that! What were you thinking?”

The girls words confused him, however. She said it didn't mean anything, but also that nothing happened. So what didn't mean anything? “You don't have to tell me, I mean, well... if nothing happened, what didn't mean anything? Did he take advantage of you? Oliver's in college, how could you get drunk with a college guy around? That's dangerous!” His frustration was evident, both at hearing that his friend did something so stupid, and also that his friend (whom he would have loved to date) went off and maybe slept with some creepy college guy. “I don't get it, I... I just don't get it!” He was getting louder, too, and in the small car's interior every decibel showed. He wasn't sure if he had ever yelled at Lexi like that before. He hoped she didn't get too mad at him for it.

Anderson took a breath, trying to calm himself back down. He had to stay focused on the danger to Lexi and not on any little jealousy that he might be feeling. She had been hung up on Mew for so long, Anderson had pretty much assumed he'd never have a chance. Now it seemed that was over, but with Oliver Hunt to pick up the slack, there was no hope. Out of his three closest female friends, Silver was unattainable, Lexi now had Oliver Hunt, and Julia was dating the weirdo Danny kid. Not that Anderson disliked him, but if Danny could get Julia, why couldn't Anderson?

“I'm sorry if I yelled, I... you scared me, is all. I don't get it.” The boy sighed again, and tried to keep his focus on the road, and not on the pretty girl that was a close friend next to him, sitting in some other guy's shirt. He had no right to be mad, other than jealousy. Was he even really concerned for his friend, or was it just that he didn't like the end result. Maybe she had a lot of fun, and who was he to deny her that? Certainly after the whole Mew incident she needed to blow off some steam. “I'm sorry.”

[Alexia Dashwood-Dune]

Lexi jumped in her seat and her hand flew off his shoulder when Anderson's yelp filled the car. Her eyes widened for a second before narrowing and then fully closing. She turned to the front and played with her hands, not looking up. The sermon that followed made Lexi cringe and she seemed to fold in on herself, biting her lower lip. Nothing he said was true but having Anderson so angry made her really upset.

And when he apologised for yelling, it made her feel even worst. "You don't have to be sorry. It's my stupid fault for getting drunk. Nothing happened and me staying over at Hunt's place didn't mean anything at all. Hunt's a gentleman. He wouldn't dare do anything. He has a girlfriend, Anderson. He wouldn't do anything to me." She reassured him.

Lexi turned to face Anderson again, her face full of concern. "Anderson please. Nothing happened I promise. It was a stupid mistake drinking, I know that now. I promise I won't do it anymore. I'm sorry!" She practically begged. Her eyes were way too concentrated on Anderson's reaction to realise the grip she had on his arm. "I'm really sorry, Anderson...don't be angry with me." She didn't even realise just how much she hated making Anderson angry until now.

[Anderson Clark]

Anderson was starting to regret yelling at Lexi, just a little. She had one of the best sad puppy dog faces he'd ever seen anyone make, and it started to make him feel pretty guilty. Still, she had been so careless!

“Look, I know you think this guy's a gentleman, but he's a college guy!” Anderson had no desire to go into any specifics, but he heard rumors of what college was like. Drinking, debauchery, fake I.D.s, the works. And the last thing he wanted was for innocent little Alexia Dashwood-Dune to get caught up in it all. “Do you remember all of last night, or did you black out? Guys can do stuff while you're asleep, you know.” Not that Anderson really knew, but that didn't mean Oliver Hunt wouldn't.

The grip Lexi had on Anderson's arm was starting to get tighter, and it was becoming more and more difficult for Anderson to concentrate on the road. Lexi's eyes were tearing up, and the boy could hardly take her begging for his forgiveness. He certainly did not mean to make her feel so bad and it really made his stomach hurt.

“I'm sorry too,” Anderson said, almost begging back at Lexi. He shifted slightly in his seat so that he could see her better. “I didn't mean to make you feel bad, I really didn't. I mean, I don't ever want to make you feel bad, Lex. I...” Anderson swallowed, thinking about what he was going to say next. This could be a huge, defining moment in his high school life. He looked over toward Lexi and licked his lips. His mouth opened, but the words were difficult. His mind raced, looking for the exact way to say what he wanted to.

It never came.

He saw the look on Lexi's face just in time to turn forward and see the dog race out in front of him. His reflexes reacted and before he even knew what his body was doing the car swerved, hopping the curb and clipping a fire hydrant before being stopped by slamming into the back of a parked car.

It happened so quickly Anderson barely realized what had occurred. He'd been in an accident, and he looked around feverishly to see what all had been hit. Car. Fire hydrant. His car. The dog was nowhere to be seen, and Anderson prayed that it ran home safely. He then turned to Lexi, his next concern.

“Are you okay?”

[Alexia Dashwood-Dune]

Anderson's insistence that Hunt was nothing more than a stererotypical college guy kind of insulted Lexi. It was as though he didn't trust her to make good judgement on who she was friends with. And why was he even hung up on the whole thing? More than necessary anyway. Lexi was flattered that Anderson was so concerned but he can't defend her honor at the expense of her good friend! It just wasn't right.

"I remember drinking. I remember the club." And she couldn't remember anything else after. "Hunt wouldn't do that!" Lexi yelled out. She was getting a bit furious with Anderson's reaction but she wasn't going to give up defending Hunt. No matter what anyone said, Hunt was her best friend and would do no such thing. She tried calming herself down and realised that she had a grip on Anderson's arm. It made her heart race that much faster but her anger was slowly dissipating.

His apology made her feel slightly better. When he turned in his chair, she wasn't even thinking that they were in a moving car. The look on his face and the words he was using had an effect on her she didn't know was possible. It was like he wanted to say something really important. Her expression shifted slightly and she leaned forward only to hear squealing and because the impact was more on the passenger side of the car, the air bag exploded in Lexi's face, hitting mostly her shoulder and the side of her head.

It knocked her back to her seat but no irreparable damage as far as the naked eye could see. Her head was spinning and she felt a ticklish sensation on her upper lip. Groaning slightly, she moved her hand to touch her lip and found that there was blood. Not much but it was there. She looked up to Anderson to see if he was hurt and he was. Some of the glass from the window had broken and it seemed to have hit Anderson on the side of his forehead.

His question didn't register as she tried to unbuckle her seatbelt to tend to Anderson. "Damn it, Anderson you're bleeding." She mumbled as she struggled with her belt. Leaving it in a huff, she leaned forward and dabbed Anderson's forehead with the dress in her hand. "Are you okay?"