"To my absolutely beautiful, charming, funny, sweet, shy, kind girlfriend," Liam proposed as we clinked our glasses together. It was about nine in the morning, and Liam called me bright and early and suggested that we grab breakfast to celebrate my acceptance letter.

"To my absolutely dorky and handsome boyfriend," I replied with a chuckle. Avedon's was slightly crowded that morning, with most of its customers sipping coffee in the corner and at the bar, rather than being a lively crowd dedicated to the arts. Jane the waitress grinned at us as she poured my coffee into the cute little green cup they had given me.

"Thank you, Jane," Liam said in a very gracious tone. Jane gave him a polite smile and went over to serve another couple at the other end of the bar. "Avery, I'm just so proud of you."

"Thanks, Liam," I replied, resting my elbow on the counter and leaning on my hand. "It's just a nice change of pace, y'know? It's good to forget about Carson for a little bit."

"Don't even say his name," Liam said, his eyes suddenly getting stern. They softened up a bit as he added, "I don't want you to get upset."

"I won't," I replied. "Promise."

"Good. You know, I'm gonna be a wreck without you when I go away to California," he murmured. Liam and I were going to schools on the opposite ends of the country, since he was going away to college in San Diego. I had almost cried when I heard the news, but I knew deep down that a little distance couldn't keep us apart.

"Same here," I concurred. "We'll be fine, though. We'll always end up okay."

Liam's eyes shifted to the ground and he replied, "Yeah, yeah we'll always be okay." His voice was unsteady and made my heart falter: He's not convinced.

"What were you busy with last night?" I inquired as I took a sip of my drink.

"Hmm?" he grumbled as he also drank from his cup.

"What were you busy with last night?" I echoed.

"Oh, just homework and the such. I don't know why I bother anymore since I got into college. I could honestly just goof off the rest of the semester and not get into trouble."

"It's not fair," I pouted, "since Mrs. Kamerino loves you."

He flashed his dorky smiled and nodded. "What's not to love?" he smirked. We giggled at each other for a few moments until he inquired, "Want to go to my house? We can go back into the woods."

"You know I always love to go back there," I replied, my cheeks blushing and my smile exponentially increasing. Liam just always knew the way to tug at my heartstrings in just the right way.

"I know," he replied, giving one last look at the bar, grabbing my hand and leading me out of Avedon's. I took a double-take back at the establishment and saw Jane adjusting a crooked painting on the wall.

"Is it going to be like this forever, Liam?" I mumbled to Liam. I leaned against his shoulder as we rested our backs against a large rock. The water tumbled down the creek as frogs leaped across the most minuscule of wet stones to cross to the other side.

"What do you mean?" he inquired.

"Just...nice," I replied, "since it's been a while things have been just nice."

"Once this whole Carson thing blows over, yeah," Liam agreed. "Once someone is finally arrested and you're clear, everything will be fine."

I thought back to my conversation with Katherine. "Who do you think did it, Liam?"

"Did what?"

"Who do you think...killed Carson?" I clarified.

"I don't know," he admitted, shrugging his shoulders. "Maybe Mr. Summers did it?"

"I...I don't think he would," I replied.

"Then I honestly have no clue, babe."

"Yeah, yeah me neither." We sat in a (surprisingly) comfortable silence for a few more minutes.

"Hey, I'm gonna go grab some drinks, do you want anything?" Liam asked as he began to stand with a groan.

"Just water, thanks," I replied. Liam flashed me a dazzling smile as he turned back to his house and threw open the sliding-glass door. I heard a buzzing next to me.

Dropped his phone out of his pocket, I figured. I turned the phone upside-down so that the screen illuminated just the dirt. I rested my head against the rock and gazed up at the sky. Birds chirped overhead as they soared from tree to tree. A jittery squirrel shot up a tree and let the branches shake underneath it. The phone finally ceased its alert for a mere minute until it blared to life again. I flipped it over to see who was calling Liam.

The contact name was "j."

I nodded to myself and set the phone down again, letting the buzzing eventually dissipate away. But yet again, it roared to life. "Ugh," I mumbled as I snatched the phone from the ground. I pressed the green accept button and raised the cell to my ear.

"He--"

"Babe, thank goodness, I really thought that they were all gone, but I found some stuffed in the drawer, and--"

"Who the hell is this?" I demanded. The girl on the other line uttered a slur and hastily hung up the phone. I stared at the contact name. Jane from Avedon's, I thought, recalling her handing us our drinks less than thirty-minutes ago.

"Avery, what's wrong?" Liam asked as he appeared behind me, water bottles in hand and his face completely dubious and naive.

I slowly turned to face him. "Liam, what the hell was Jane calling you 'babe' for?" I demanded, tossing him his phone. It landed on the leaves below him when he failed to catch it.

"Avery, I...fuck, I didn't mean to--"

"Didn't mean to what Liam?" I waited for his response. I waited for him to say 'I love you,' like he did all those months ago. I waited for him to say that he would lie for me in case he was questioned. I waited for him to say he was beyond sorry, and he understood that I would need some time. I waited for him to reassure me like he did before, and that everything would be okay.

But he didn't. He just shook his head and buried his face in his hands. "Avery, I--"

"Shut up," I replied, storming out beside him.

"Avery, please, just gimme a minute," Liam pleaded.

"You promised, Liam!" I shouted, gyrating on my heel and jabbing my pointer finger into his chest. "You promised to always be there for me, Liam! And what did you do? What did you fucking do?"

"Listen," he replied, panting and heaving.

"No, I'm not listening to you. Don't talk to me--don't even fucking look at me, Liam."

I sprinted out of his house. Away from his confused mother and the roaring creek, away from him, away from Jane. I started running. I didn't have a car, so I just bolted away. I waited for him to come pick me up in his car, or to call me to apologize.

But he never did.

"Dakota?" I sobbed into the phone. It took me almost an hour to reach home, transitioning from dashing down the street to quietly meandering down the sidewalk.

"Avery? Avery, what's wrong?" she asked, her voice drowning in worry.

And she was over my house in less than five minutes, consoling me and cursing Liam's name. "It's okay, Avery, you're okay."

"Why did everything go to shit, Dakota? Why now? Why senior year?"

"I don't know, Avery," she honestly replied. "I'm sorry, but I don't know."

"Never leave me, Dakota," I pleaded.

"Of course not, Avery," she promised. "I'll always be there for you. You know that."

"Yeah, I know, Dakota," I replied. We sat there in silence (aside from my sad sniffling from my runny nose) as Dakota pulled me closer. It hurt to think back to the whole event, but I recalled something that Jane said that tugged at my curiosity.

"I really thought that they were all gone, but I found some stuffed in the drawer."

"Jane...Jane said that she found something," I murmured.

"Found what?"

"I don't know," I replied. "She said that 'they were all gone' but she actually found whatever 'they' was stuffed in a drawer."

"Does it really matter that much?"

"I...I guess not, but--"

"Will it make you feel better if we find out what it is?" she quietly inquired.

"Getting some resolution on some damn thing for once would probably make me feel better," I honestly replied.

"Alright," Dakota said, clapping her hands together and helping me rise to my feet. "Then let's go pay that slut a visit." Dakota forced me from my room and had to practically drag me down the staircase. "I swear, I'm gonna kill Liam."

"I thought you liked him," I grumbled.

"I liked him, but I love you, Avery. You're my best friend. He's just some douche." She smiled through her anger.

"What did I do to deserve you, Dakota?"

"I don't know, but you deserve something good right now. Someone good, right now," she replied. I nodded because she was completely right. But I thought above everything, I deserved a nap. "So, first--," Dakota began, but was then interrupted by the doorbell ringing. "I'll get it, stay here." I squatted onto the last stair as Dakota went to answer the door. I rested my head in my hands, wondering where everything had went wrong.

"What do you want?" Dakota asked. I saw her hand shaking.

"Is Avery home?"

"No, she's--"

"Dakota, who is...oh," I replied. Maybe I should've kept my mouth shut, I thought as I stood to greet Officer Eliza. Despite her being kindhearted to me, I was getting quite sick of seeing her. Nothing good ever happened to me when she was around.

"Avery, I need you to come down to the station with us," she said.

"What does she need to go down for?" Dakota demanded, placing her hands on her hips.

"I'm talking to her, not you," Eliza retorted, pointing her finger at me. "Avery, please don't make me drag you out of here." She patted her side, gesturing to the handcuffs that were clanging against her hips.

"I...okay," I replied, "let's go." I turned to Dakota. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"I...," Dakota stammered. She turned between police officer in the door and me, her whole body visibly shaking. "I'll...see you later," she echoed.

I trailed Eliza out the door, and her inquiry when I piled into the back of the cop car made me want to puke:

"Why did you lie to us, Avery?"