lacy_is_for_suffering

>Her grandmother is on her death bed
>They all go to say their goodbyes to her, hoping to get something out of the journey
>The moment Lacy walks into the room, a huge argument between her grandfather and her mom and dad erupts, only to have them interrupted by a coughing Grandma Loud
>Her grandmother's last words to Lacy are "Get this freak out of my sight.."
>At the funeral, Mr. Loud is an absolute wreck.
>Lincoln and Lynn bring Lacy despite most of the family asking them not to, for his sake.
>When he sees them come up, he tries to argue with Lincoln and Lynn again, yelling in the middle of the procession, only to fall apart in Lincoln and Lynn's arms.
>Lacy tries to join in on the hug to comfort her grieving grandfather, only to have her be pushed away by him, a look of utter contempt in his eyes, despite his overwhelming sadness.
>When news that Lori had her baby reached Lacy and her family, they raced out to her residence to congratulate her and see the baby.
>Lincoln and Lynn tried to ignore the fact that they didnt even get the news personally from Lori that she was pregnant.
>When they arrived, Lori made sure to put on her best smile and obviously feigned excitement around Lacy, showing her around the house and eventually leaving her to play with her cousin alone.
>While she was taking care and playing with her, she overheard an increasingly heated conversation from outside the door.
>Most was too muffled, but she clearly heard from Lori that Lynn and Lincoln needed "to keep that 'thing' away from my daughter"
>It was the only time Lacy was allowed to visit Aunt Lori in her childhood, and she'd never see her cousin until her late teens.
>Most of the times she could see any of her aunts, they'd never actually speak.
>All but her Aunt Leni.
>Her Aunt Leni was an up and coming model and fashion designer who would always go out of her way to dress up Lacy and give her makeovers.
>One day, news reached Lacy that Leni had made it big in a modeling gig, and the family traveled a great distance to see her.
>The runway show was astounding in Lacy's eyes, with Leni being the star of the walk, she couldn't wait to meet up with her afterwards.
>As she made her way to Leni's room, she was suddenly stopped by two men clad in suits.
>Turns out, Leni had told her agent about Lincoln and Lynn's child, and he didn't want her presence ruining her shot at a steady career in fashion and tarnishing her name.
>Anytime she'd try to call or meet up with Leni, it'd be blocked by body guards or the call wouldnt go through.
>Lacy would have to watch Leni's amazing career take off from afar, and lost her only extended family with it.
>As Lacy grew into her early teens, she heard the stories of her Aunts successes.
>Lori was a respected political figure, Leni a fashion designer and model, Luna was a famed rocker, Luan an up and coming comedienne, and the younger ones all getting into good pathes and careers.
>All except her mom and dad.
>Lacy dug around and found a bunch of newspaper clippings, one titled 'Rookie Expelled over Incestuous Daughter' and 'Rising Comic Artist Steps Down after Allegations'.
>When she brings them up to her mom and dad, they decide to sit her down, both looking nervously to one another.
>"We gave up our dreams for you and our love, honey."
>"You're the most important thing to happen to either of us."
>From that day onward, Lacy felt especially bad to see her father, exhausted and stressed out from hours at an office, wistfully looking at what was once his studio room
>Or when her mother stared longingly at the few trophies she still proudly displayed, whose numbers was rapidly depleting as she couldn't stand to look at what once was and placed them in storage far from the house.
>When she was finally ready to go into High School, she quickly found out how fast the grapevine took hold of rumors.
>Her friends from Middle School wouldnt even give her time time of day, so she turned to sports to keep her preoccupied.
>She excelled at softball, and quickly became one of the top players. For awhile, her popularity even increased.
>Her parents would come to her games and cheer for her.
>For the first time in a long while, she felt happy.
>However, as time went on, the rumors began to circulate much more, mostly due to the parents of the kids on the team talking about their children 'playing with the little freak of nature.'
>Slowly, her teammates all began to do just as her friends from middle school had, often ignoring her on the field and off of it.
>Unable to handle once more being shunned for something she couldn't control, she quit the team, and decided to play out the rest of her high school friendless.