"I can't believe you and Hardin live here.. how weird." Steph says when her and Tristan arrive at the apartment.

"It's still weird to me too, sometimes." I admit.

"It's a really nice place." Tristan praises and I smile.

"Thank you."

"So what's with Hardin and Landon hanging out?" Steph asks.

We all sit at the table in the kitchen.

"Well they have been getting along, sort of and we got Landon tickets to a hockey game for Christmas so Hardin went with him." I explain.

"We got tickets? You two sound like a married couple. Why the hell would Hardin want to buy Landon anything for Christmas?" Steph laughs.

I didn't think about the fact that none of Hardin's friends know that Landon is his step-brother. I'm not sure if he would mind them knowing but I decide against telling them for the time being. I never know what will set him off.

"I mean I got them for him but Hardin was there when I gave them to him." I lie and try to change the subject.

"If I hear one more person talk about marriage." I groan, rubbing my temples with my fingertips.

"Sorry, I won't even ask why." She smiles and pulls a beer from her purse.

"You drove with that?" I ask, horrified.

"Yes, it isn't open." Steph laughs and twists the top open with her shirt.

"So who do you know that is playing at Canal Street?" Tristan asks me.

"My profesoor actually."

"What? How old is he?" He asks.

"Twenty two."

"Woah, he's young to be a professor." Steph takes another drink of her beer.

"Yeah and he's in a band." I remark.

"He invited you specifically to come tonight?" Tristan questions, his expression changing.

"Yeah.. well no. He told me to bring all of my friends but since I don't have many you two are the next best thing." I tease.

"Thanks bitch. We should call everyone and have them come out then!" Steph says and wastes no time getting her phone out.

"Not Molly." I add and her and Tristan both laugh.

"Of course not, she has some new boyfriend now so she isn't around much anyway since you trampled her." Steph tells me and the three of us burst into laughter.

"I'll text Zed and Nate now. Logan failed two classes last semester so he is on lock down basically, he hasn't even been throwing parties like he used to." Tristan says.

I know Hardin probably will not be thrilled about Zed being invited but I'm not going to tell them not to invite him.

"Really? No parties at the frat house?" I gape.

"Oh there are still parties, Logan just isn't as involved in throwing them as he was before." Steph laughs.

"I don't even know what time the show starts." I realize while Tristan is waiting for a reply from his friends.

"Probably nine, that's the usual time there." Tristan tells me.

"You are changing right?" Steph asks with a sour look on her face.

"I guess. I mean this is not..isn't," I correct myself. "That bad, but yes I was going to change."

"Good." She smiles.

I change into different jeans and a plain black shirt before adding more makeup to my eyes and cheeks. I don't want to over-do it but I don't want to look sloppy either. It has been a long time.. actually I don't remember the last time that I went out anywhere with a friend without Hardin.

"Zed and Nate are meeting us there at nine so we should leave soon." Tristan says when I walk back into the living room.

"You look really hot, just lose the ponytail." Steph suggests.

"It's just like the old days." I roll my eyes at her and she laughs.

"Some things never change." Her tongue sticks out at me before she takes another drink.

I force myself not to think about the "old days" any longer. The days that I was being played for a fool by the entirety of my "friends" including Steph and Tristan. I don't want to dwell on the past, I have chosen to forgive them so I refuse to let my mind wander to the painful memories.

"I will drive separately in case I leave before you two." I tell Steph and Tristan as we walk outside.

Hardin's POV.

"Did you see that! How the heck did that count!?" Landon screams next to me.

Even when he is angry he still sounds like a pussy.

"C'mon!" He yells once more and I bite my tongue in laughter.

I suppose Tessa was right, he isn't too terrible of company, not my first choice obviously but not so bad.

"I hear that the more you yell and scream the more likely they are to win." I tell him.

He ignores me and yells again, I shake my head and pull my phone from my pocket to text Tessa. I haven't heard from her in over an hour and she planning to hang out with Steph tonight and I want to see what the hell they are up to. I don't like the idea of Tessa being out with Steph without me at all. I send her a quick text asking her whereabouts and turn my attention back to Landon.

"Yes!" Landon shouts when his team wins the game at the last second.

The crowd piles out of the arena and I push my way through them.

"Watch it." A voice behind me says.

"Sorry." Landon apologizes.

"That's what I thought." The voice says and I turn around to find a nervous Landon and an asshole wearing the opposing teams jersey.

Landon swallows but doesn't say anything else but the man continues to taunt him.

"Look how scared he looks." Another voice says, one of the assholes friends I presume.

"I...I.." Landon stammers.

Are you kidding me?

"Fuck off, both of you." I snarl and they both turn to look at me.

"Or what?" I can smell the beer on the tall one's breath.

"Or I will beat the shit out of you in front of everyone in this crowd and you will be humiliated, that's what." I warn him, meaning every single word.

"C'mon Dennis, let's go." The short one, who seems to be the only one with sense tugs on his friends jersey and they disappear into the crowd.

I grab Landon by the arm and pull him the rest of the way, Tessa will have my balls if I let him get beat up tonight.

"Thanks for that, you didn't have to do that." Landon says when we reach his car.

"Don't make it awkward, okay?" I grin and he shakes his head but I hear him laugh quietly to himself.

"Should I take you back to your apartment now?" He asks after several minutes of awkward silence.

"Yeah, sure." I check my phone again to see if Tessa has responded, she hasn't.

"Are you moving?" I ask Landon.

"I don't know yet, I really want to be closer to Dakota." He explains.

"So why doesn't she move here?"

"Because her career in ballet wouldn't work here, she has to be in New York City."

"And you are just going to give up your life and move for her?" I scoff.

"Yeah, I would rather do that than continue to be away from her. I don't mind moving anyway, New York City would be an awesome place to live. It's not always about one person in the relationship, you know?" He says.

"What that supposed to be directed at me?"

"Not exactly but if you think it was, maybe it is."

"Shut the hell up, would you?"

"Are you telling me you wouldn't move to New York to be with Tessa?"

"Yes, that is exactly what I am telling you. I don't want to live in New York, so I won't be living in New York."

"You know I don't mean New York, I mean Seattle. She wants to live in Seattle."

"She will be moving to England with me." I tell him.

"What if she doesn't? You know she doesn't want to so why would you force her to?"

"I'm not forcing her to do anything Landon. She will move because she won't want to be without me, simple as that." I check my phone once more to try to distract myself from the irritation my lovely step-brother is causing me.

"You're an asshole."

"Never claimed that I wasn't." I shrug.

I dial Tessa's number and wait for her to answer. She doesn't. Great, fucking great. I hope she is still at home when I get there, if Landon didn't drive so god damn slow we would be there by now. I stay silent, picking at the torn skin surrounding my fingernails. After what seems like three fucking hours Landon pulls up in front of my apartment.

"Tonight wasn't so bad, right?" He asks me as I get out of the car and I chuckle.

"No, I guess it wasn't." I admit.

"If you tell anyone I just said that I will kill you." I tease and he smiles before pulling away.

It isn't until I step off of the elevator that I realize my keys are still inside the apartment and if Tess isn't here, I am locked out.

The door is locked and she doesn't answer when I try to call her again. Fucking perfect.

I am left with no other option but to call Landon back and have him pick me back up.

Tessa's POV.

When we arrive at Canal Street Tavern, the bar is smaller than I expected. The building looks like it is made from wood, an actual old style tavern. The theme inside seems to be trains, which suits the whole look of the tavern.

"I thought smoking inside wasn't legal anymore?" I ask Steph as I hand the woman at the door my drivers license for proof of age. A stamp in the shape of a train cart is pressed against my hand and I follow Steph towards the back of the dark, smoke filled room.

I depise the smell of cigarettes and I feel my throat itching already.

Zed and Nate stand up from the small circular table and Nate greets me first.

"Tessa! Where's Hardin?" He asks with a sweet smile.

"He's.. He is at a hockey game." I tell him, purposely omitting any further details.

"Cool. Want a drink?" He asks and I look around the room.

"No one will notice, trust me. I tip well." He smirks and I nod in agreement.

I will be driving home so I can only have one drink, one drink will be fine.

"Hey Tess." Zed says without meeting my eyes as he sits down.

I don't know why I hadn't noticed the girl sitting next to him before.

"Uhm.. Hey." I can't help but stare at her, she is beautiful.

"Hi, I'm Rebecca nice to meet you." She smiles.

"Hi, I'm Tessa." I force a smile.

She leans into Zed and for some reason I look away immediately.

"Let's get a drink so we can enjoy the show." Steph says to Tristan and Nate pours me a glass of beer from the large pitcher on the table.

I don't really care for beer but it would be rude to decline the drink he hands me so I just take a drink instead. It tastes just as bad as I remember but I continue to drink it anyway.

"Alright everyone! Tonight we have a pretty cool line up, first we have a local band that may or may not have already finished a bottle of Jack to themselves! Give it up for The Reckless Few!" A young man with dreadlocks yells into the microphone.

All the attention is directed to the stage, Jon...Professor Soto, is the first one to walk onto the small stage. He is dressed in a dark blue plaid button up shirt and black jeans with holes in the knees. The idea that he is my professor seems too strange right now, seeing him dressed this way and getting ready to perform on stage with a band.

I take a seat next to Nate, across from Zed and his date.

"Which one is he?" Steph leans across the table and asks me.

"The one in the blue." I tell her as the music starts.

"Woah." She winks and Tristan gives her a playful glare.

I take another gulp of the bitter beer and I try not to look at Zed and his date. Professor Soto begins to sing and I am suprised by how well his voice sounds. He is really good. Almost every head in the room is bobbing up and down, feet are tapping, and fingers are strumming on the table tops. I find myself in a trance, the song is soft but rugged in a strange way and it makes me feel nostalgic but I can't seem to pin point the exact time or memory.

I think Hardin would really like this song... Hardin. I haven't talked to him in a while. When I check my phone I have three missed calls and four text messages.

"I'll be right back." I tell them and rush to the bathroom.

I hope everything is okay and nothing happened at the hockey game, I never know when it comes to Hardin.

He doesn't answer the first time I call but as I am drafting a text message to him, the phone vibrates.

"Why haven't you been answering?" He booms through the phone.

"Sorry, it was loud in here and I haven't checked my phone. Is everything okay?" I ask.

A girl wearing a red leather dress stumbles into the bathroom so I go into a stall.

"Loud in where? Where the hell are you?"

"At Canal Street Tavern."

"What?"

"Canal Street Tav.."

"I heard you, why are you there?" He cuts me off.

"Well.. we are watching a band play." I will explain the details later.

"Who's we?"

"Me, Steph, Tristan, Nate, Zed, and his date." I make sure to mention that Zed has a date with him.

"Zed huh.."

"He has a girl with him, calm down." I whine.

"I'll be there soon. I am locked out of the apartment because you decided to take my car."

"You forgot your keys anyway so you would have been locked out anyway." I correct him.

"I never said you could drive my car." He huffs through the speaker.

"Turn left." I hear him say, he must be with Landon still.

"I didn't ask, did I?" I remark, sure to let the sarcasm show in my tone.

"You never do."

"I don't need to." I remind him.

"I will be there soon." He hangs up the phone.

I hope he is in a better mood when he arrives. I make my way back to the table to let everyone know that Hardin will be arriving soon, I suppose warn them is the better choice of words. Everyone seems pleased, except Zed but he is too busy paying attention to Rebecca and I am too busy downing another glass of beer that Nate slid in front of me.

The song I was very fond of is now over and Professor Soto is speaking into the microphone about the process of writing the songs they play.

"Do you want another drink?" Zed asks.

"Yes." Rebecca and I answer at the same time.

Of course he was talking to her. Why would I assume he was talking to me? It's all the cigarette smoke and beer clouding my judgment.

"Oh, sorry. I thought.. I don't know." I stammer.

Zed's face flashes with an emotion that I can't decipher before he walks away from the table.

"I can't believe that guy is a professor, I hope I get him next year." Rebecca smiles.

"Next year?" I ask her.

Steph is watching our awkward exchange and seems to be wondering the same thing as I am.. why is it so awkward?

"Yeah, when I am in college next year." She tells me.

"You are in high school?" I say much too loudly, and very rudely without intending to.

"Yeah, I'm eighteen though." She smiles and I look away when Zed comes back to the table with three drinks.

He sits one in front of me and I make a mental promise to myself not to look over at them for the remainder of the night. Who cares if she is in high school? If Zed likes her that's all that matters, at least she is eighteen.

The second song begins and it holds a slightly heavier beat but it is just as great as the first song.

"They are really good." Tristan praises, rocking his head back and forth along with the music.

"Hardin's here." Steph says and taps my shoulder causing me to turn around.

Maybe it's two.. now three glasses of beer I have had but Hardin's presence seems to turn every head in the smoky room. He literally looks like he is walking down a runway as he makes his way to the table, scowl and all. What surprises me the most is that Landon is only a few feet behind him.

"Nice of you to join us." Nate mocks Hardin.

Hardin sticks his middle finger up at Nate before taking a chair from the table next to us, without permission of course and pulling it to sit next to me.

"Grab one." He says to Landon.

Landon stands still, obviously uncomfortable so Hardin leans over and grabs ahold of the back of another chair, scooting it across the floor to where Landon is standing.

"There, sit." Hardin demands but Landon obliges.

"Uhm.. hey Landon, you are the last person I thought I would see here." Nate teases.

"Don't." Hardin snaps, making Nate raise his hands in surrender.

"It was a joke." Nate pouts and smiles at Landon to erase the tension.

Landon being the sweet guy that he is returns the smile and looks up to the stage,

"Is that Professor Soto?" He gapes and turns his head back to me.

"Yeah." I answer, avoiding Hardin's glare burning into me.

"That is your professor?" Hardin moves my chair so I am forced to look at him.

"Yep! He is hot isn't he?" Steph says.

She really doesn't know when to keep her mouth shut.

(After 1 has reached over 21 million reads!! And After 2 has reached 15 million, that is so incredible and means so much to me! Ily all so much! Please vote and comment even though I can't be ranked anymore :( I just watched the TCA's and omg Hardin twerking killed me lol. Their performance was so amazing and they all looked so great, tired but still hotter than anyone else there lol. Ily all, goodnight! xo and keep the theories coming because I love when a few people catch little hints that I have been dropping! )