The Duncney Fanclub

But they're just friends, right? In fact, rumor has it, they hate each other!

If it wasn't live television, Courtney would have laughed herself stupid.

It felt surreal, like the words that had tumbled out of his mouth were all a trick of her ears wanting him to say those words. Luckily Annabelle was there to reassure Courtney this was real life.

"Well fuck, aren't you glad we let you watch this show now?" Annabelle nonchalantly commented. Courtney turned to glare at her sister.

Suddenly, she was on her feet and heading for the door. Bridgette quickly jumped in her way.

"No," the blonde calmly exclaimed. "We talked about this. You are not going to go crawling back to him, Courtney. He hurt you."

"Let her go," Annabelle pleaded from behind her sister, searching for her car keys. "I need to see how this plays out so I can write it up as FanFiction later!"

"You are not helping," Bridgette replied, standing firmly in front of the apartment door. "Courtney..."

Courtney pulled face at her best friend. She knew how much Bridgette wanted to protect her from more heartache, Courtney had asked her to do so personally. But Courtney also knew that Bridgette was casually hooking up with Geoff aka Duncan's best friend and was the only person she knew that could tell her where Duncan was currently living, so she had to get Bridgette on her side for that reason alone.

"I love him, Bridge." The words shocked even Courtney, though, somehow, she knew they were true. "I am completely in love with him and have been for a long time. I know that's why it hurt so much when he left. I know this whole relationship started out as utter bullshit, but...but I have fallen so far. I can't leave it like this. For all I know, he's lying for the publicity. But there's also a part of me that knows he's telling the truth. "Courtney slumped her weight on one side, reaching out her hand to hr best friends. "I need to find out, even if it's just for closure."

Somehow, it worked.

And Courtney found herself being driven very fast in her sisters car on the way to the address Bridgette had given them. Bridgette herself had opted to head to Geoff's in preparation for the blow-out that may happen.

It wasn't until they reached downtown LA, where Courtney knew Duncan was currently leaving the studio lot, on his way home for a sulk session, did the reality even sink into Courtney's mind.

This was the boy who she had a fake relationship with for a number of weeks. This is the boy that made her life a living hell during those weeks and for eight months prior to them. This is the boy that Courtney would have done anything to get away from. And now, here she was, doing anything to be near him.

He had broken her heart. That morning when she'd sneaked into his apartment, like she'd done dozens of times before, she was simply looking for an escape from her overbearing mother. The night before was a blur for Courtney, the night they'd both gotten drunk and ended up in a jail cell. All she remembered was a lot of throwing up and a conversation about Britney Spears. She'd woken up to more throwing up and her mother scolding her from the other side of the apartment about how reckless her behavior had become, about how she should have cared more about the reputation she giving the family. So Courtney had left to see Duncan, to crawl into bed with him to simply piss him off and just waste the day doing nothing like they always did.

It was during those days, Courtney realized, that she had fallen so hard for him.

She knew this was crazy, that even though she knew he only took his coffee black and would always pick country music over rock, she didn't really know him at all. Courtney knew that everything Duncan put out there in the public eye was a total facade, one she had taken to wearing herself. But he'd kept it up around her, only so very rarely showing his true colors. Courtney didn't even know what she was heading into, and suddenly she felt sick.

"Annie, turn the car around please," she asked her older sister as nice as she could. "Or at least pull over so I don't ruin your seats."

And once the car was parked on a side road, Courtney got out and threw up her guts.

"We're not going home," Annabelle insisted. "I know you're scared, but I refuse to let you back out now."

"Annie-"

"No, you listen to me for a change, Court," she interrupted. "I don't know what you were on about talking to Bridgette earlier. Fuck, I don't really care what you were on about. But I know for a fact that I have not seen as happy in years as you were when you were with Duncan, for as brief a period of time as it was. You are always so focused on school. On your grades, your GPA, getting your assignments in on time. When mom got a call to say that you were in jail, I laughed so hard I thought I'd cracked a rib. You? In jail? It was impossible, I swore they had the wrong person."

"Is there a point to this shitty pep talk?" Courtney asked, doubled over, wondering if she was going to vomit again.

"My point is, Courtney, that Duncan is really good for you. I'm not saying you should give up caring about school, especially when you're so close to graduating. But live a little, loosen up. Duncan brought out side to you I haven't seen since we were kids. Don't give up on him now."

Courtney wanted to argue. She wanted to fight back against her sister with all of the reasons she was wrong. But there was nothing she could do or say to go against Annabelle. Her older sister was right about everything, and it was killing Courtney further.

Somehow, they were back in the car and on their way again. Courtney was chewing on the ends of her hair while Annabelle sang along obnoxiously to the radio. They were pulling up outside the expensive, gated apartment block too soon for Courtney. She nervously watched her sister punch the numbers into the keypad, the combination given to them from Bridgette.

Courtney was still having a hard time coming to terms with the fact that Bridgette was now secretly dating Geoff. She couldn't believe that Bridgette would keep that a secret from her, especially after Courtney had gone out of her way to tell Bridgette the truth about her and Duncan's relationship almost immediately after she found out. Courtney wanted to be overjoyed for her best friend, but at the moment, she was feeling too agitated.

"Well shit, has he upgraded or what?" Annabelle remarked, letting out a low whistle as they pulled up outside the apartment complex. Courtney looked up at the gleaming white building, noting how much more modern it was than where she lived. Duncan really had left her behind for a better life, the thought of which made her legs turn to jello and she was unable to move any further from the car.

Annabelle shot her sister a glare. "I will throw you over my shoulder if I have to," she threatened and it was enough for Courtney take a shaky step forward. She couldn't see Duncan's car around, but she noticed his sisters on the far end of the lot.

Courtney's older sister knocked on the door and they waited until Duncan's older sister opened the door. She was quick in doing so, but eventually she did, and with much surprise, took a step back and looked between the two.

"Hello," Darcy greeted awkwardly. "I guess you watched the interview?"

"Hence why we're here," Annabelle shrugged.

Darcy nodded her head, moving out the way for the two sisters to enter the apartment. "He's not home yet," she informed the pair. "But you can stay and wait, I suppose. We're having an ice cream feast in the kitchen."

"Don't have to ask me twice," Annabelle grinned, licking her lips. Courtney, however, could not enjoy in the ice cream feast as her nerves were back to eating her alive. She'd hoped Duncan would have been home by the time they got there, by some miracle, whatever it may be. But no. Now she had time to think, now she had time to wonder. Her heart was beating radically and her finger nails were being chewed to nothing.

And then he came in, and she was waiting at the foot of the staircase, in plain view for him to see. Duncan had to do a double take. They stared for a moment, nothing but a staring contest passing between them.

Then he finally said, "I really need to get the women in my life to stop letting you into my apartments unannounced."

Courtney didn't want to keep up with his attempt for humor, she was there for one reason only.

"Did you mean it?" She asked, hoping for a honest answer for once. "Do you really love me, or is this some other publicity stunt that Heather has set?" Suddenly, she didn't want to know the answer. He either loved her or he didn't, and Courtney didn't know what would be worse.

Duncan stopped and stared. Courtney could hear their breathing in the quiet apartment, and that was when she realized their sisters were more than likely eavesdropping on this conversation.

"Is that why you're here?" He asked softly. "To find out if I love you or not?" Courtney wanted to nod her head, to tell him that that was obviously the reasons she was there and for him to top being such an idiot about these things. "You're not here because, regardless of how I really feel, you already feel that way?"

Courtney fell. Her snkled gave way beneath her and she hit the hard step behind her with an echoing thud. Why was she there?

"I don't have time for mind games, Duncan," she told him, biting down on her tongue before saying much crueller words. "I came here because I need to know if it's true. If you really do love me or if this is just some sick and twisted way that you'e going to reel me back in, only to push me aside again."

He didn't answer, but that was more than enough for Courtney to understand what he meant. She tried to get to her feet, but everything she had stopped her from doing so. So she sat there, numb to the world around her that she did not fit into.

Duncan took two long strides and sunk to his knees in front of her. He took her cold hands in his, puling them against his chest as he stared into her darkening eyes.

Courtney stared back. All the pain and deceit was crushing down on her lungs once more. She wanted to yell, or scream, to tell how it wouldn't be so easy to win back her affections with one lopsided smile, but she was numb. He could look at her like that all he wanted, but Courtney couldn't feel a thing.

"Just tell me the truth," she whispered on a dying breath.

Duncan was shaking, she realized. His grip like iron and his gaze taking over her own vision. He didn't give the information up voluntarily, but his lips parted and he began spilling words that Courtney didn't know she needed to hear until then.

"I'm sorry, Courtney," he told her. "I'm sorry for everything I did. I should never have let you get dragged into Heather's messy plan, I should never have gone along with it myself. I should have watched out for you more, guarded you carefully. That night...that night was a disaster for us both. I never wanted you to see that part of things. But...but it made me realize something; I can't protect you from everything. That was not my job, that is still not my job. I let you go because I was scared, because I knew I was no good for you. But you were good for me. I was a mess after you left. I wouldn't get out of bed, I didn't have anything left to live for without you there by my side. It was pathetic. And then your sister-"

"My sister? What did my sister do now?"

"She kind of cornered me," Duncan admitted sheepishly. Courtney gritted her teeth and thinned her lips, knowing that Annabelle was next on her hit list. "She...she convinced me that what I'd done to you was absolute bullshit, she made me see what an absolute idiot I had been."

"Well, I'm glad someone finally made you see it," Courtney mumbled, her eyes never moving from his.

Duncan shook his head, a small laugh running from his lips.

Then he said it.

"I love you."

And Courtney thought her chest would cave in, her brain would explode, the hutterflies in her stomach were on their way of escaping. She lifted her head, taking a shaky breath.

"I don't know how you could doubt it- well, okay, I do know how you could doubt it..." Duncan corrected himself. "What I mean is, of course I love you, Courtney. You're my everything. I've gotten to a point where I don't remember what life was like without you in my life, and I don't want to remember either way. I don't want to lose you again, I don't want to spend another day without you in it. At least tell me you feel the same."

That was when Courtney didn't hold back anymore. She took her hand back from him and slapped him across the face.

"Fell the same?" She questioned, getting to her face. "Do I feel the same?" Her voice prograssivley got louder until her words were screamed. "Of course I feel the fucking same, you utter douchebag, why else would I be here?!"

Duncan was stunned into silence, still on the floor by the staircase, one hand on his reddened cheek, his mouth gaping with shock. But Courtney didn't stop.

"Do you realize how much you hurt me when you told me you were going back on the deal? Do you realize how much I cried? I actually thought that my parents were right about you all along- you were just out to break my heart. I know what was going on between us wasn't real, for a long time I was able to keep it separate. We were maybe friends at best, nothing more..." Courtney shook her head, catching her breath. She lowered her voice, "And then I fell for you. I fell for you so hard that you were all I was ever able to think about. I needed to be around you, as much as I despised you. I've never been in love before, I've never told any guy in my life that I loved them. I always figured I was too young to know what it all meant. Then you came along with your Mohawk and your piercings and your tattoos. The whole bad boy persona that I wanted rid of. Suddenly, everything made sense. I felt good around you, I felt whole. Like a piece of me was finally found when I didn't even know one was missing."

Duncan got to his feet and Courtney watched as he walked over to her, taking his face in his hands. He was broken and defeated, Courtney could see it in his eyes. He was sorry.

So, when he kissed her, she didn't pull away. She let him press his lips to hers and hold her tightly in his arms until they couldn't breath anymore. Courtney rested her head on his chest, Duncan cradled her back, not wanting to let go.

"This is it, okay?" He told her. "You and me, no more messing around. I love you and you love me and we're going to make this fucked up thing work."

Courtney nodded as best as she could. "I don't want you to leave me again."

"I'm not going anywhere." And Courtney knew he meant it.

This wasn't exactly how she'd planned things to play out, but somehow there she was, standing in Duncan's living room after they'd both confessed their love. Somehow, it was better than she could have ever imagined their little deal would have turned into.

Once upon a time, she had hated this young man, now she would give anything to stay wrapped up in his arms for the rest of her life.

"By the way," Courtney sniffled. "Our sisters are having an ice cream party in your kitchen."

---

A/N: And that's that.

Sad to say, it is over.

This was most definitely not where I thought this story would end up way back when I started it in September. This was a crazy idea I had and, well, it stemmed into something crazier...

There is still the epilogue to go, so I won't get all misty eyed yet ;P

Also, sorry for my slight disappearance...there were some technical issues with my brain.

Thanks for reading, please review (:

Love, ChloeRhiannonX