Hello my lovely readers. Here's a new long chapter for you guys. Don't forget to let me know what you think.

I hope you're all safe and doing well.

Take good care of yourselves. God bless you guys and have a wonderful day ahead?

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AJ's POV

"Well. Here goes." Stopping in front of the dark brown gates, I took a deep breath. It wasn't enough to calm my raging heart but it was enough to keep me going. I was terrified to walk in. My hands were clammy as I stared at the front door. I've known these people my whole life and for the first time ever, I felt like a stranger.

As I looked at Cora's house, I noticed that the garden was not properly maintained. The grass was overgrown. The plants were not trimmed. Brown leaves filled the garden grounds. There were no flowers blooming in any of the flowering plants as well.

Mrs.Charles loved her garden. She loved the plants and all her flowers. Envious neighbours would only boost her pride. Her garden was always the talk of the neighborhood. And now, it looked dead. It somehow reflected what she must be feeling at the moment.

Pushing my fears away, I walked up to the front door and knocked twice.

No answer.

I knocked again. There was no answer but I heard shuffling from the inside. And so I knocked again.

After a long moment, I heard the sound of the lock behind the door. Then it opened and there stood a very dull looking Mrs. Charles. Her hair was unkempt and dishevelled. Her clothes were wrinkled up and she had heavy eye bags. Her eyes were no longer the vibrant grey that would brighten up your day by just looking at them. They were dead and emotionless. She had her arms wrapped around herself and was squinting due to the light. I assumed that she never left the house ever since Cora passed away.

Her condition brought tears to my eyes. This strong woman looked so weak. She had given up on life. As I continued to observe her, I looked into her eyes and saw myself.

This must have been how I looked like. This must have been how Rylen felt when he saw me. How Willow and Noah must have felt.

A single tear fell out of my eye and slid down my cheek.

"AJ."

"Aunty."

"Wh-"

"I am....I am so sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't save her. I'm sorry I wasn't there to stop it. Maybe if I paid enough attention to her I would have known something was terribly off. I'm so sorry-"

I couldn't continue because she pulled me towards her and hugged me. I cried in her embrace and she cried in mine. We poured out our sorrow and mourned for the one we lost. At that moment I realised that this was what we needed.

We needed to embrace each other and let go of the all the pain and hurt that was buried inside of us. We needed to cry it out with each other. We needed to accept Cora's death. I needed to accept it.

We stood in each other's arms at the entrance of her house as she wept for a long time. Then we finally away from each other and I saw her red eyes.

"I wanted to ask where have you been?" She finally whispered to me. I was shocked to hear those words as I was expecting her to be angry with me.

"I thought you wouldn't want to see me." I said to her in a shaky voice.

"Stupid girl!" She wept as her lips wobbled. "Why would I be mad at you? When I lost my baby, I was so lost and I was so terrified. I was so afraid that I had lost two daughters." This time, I couldn't help myself. I hugged her.

"I didn't know what to do or how to live a life without Cora." I whispered. That was the truth. At one point, I thought it would have been a lot easier if I had died with her.

That was how empty I felt.

"We have to. We can do it together AJ." Mrs. Charles took my hand and led me inside the house. We went straight to the kitchen and she made me sit on the counter.

"Forgive me dear. My house is a mess right now." She sniffled. "Like you, I didn't know how to live without her. I couldn't do it." She said. "Wo..would you like something to drink?"

"Tea please."

"Yes. Of course." She stood up to boil the water.

"Why didn't you come sooner?"

"I couldn't. I couldn't.....face anyone." I admitted.

"I understand. I felt like a big part of me died with my daughter." She muttered, looking at the wall. I didn't talk. "I couldn't eat. Couldn't sleep. My body refused to do anything." Fresh tears filled her eyes. She was trembling as she spoke.

"After nearly two months, I'm talking to you." She took another shaky breath. "Even my husband and I don't talk unless he has to tell me something very important." She wiped away her tears and continued to make the tea.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. She was breaking apart. I didn't know where Mr. Charles was at the moment but I could only hope he was doing better than his wife.

"AJ please don't dissapear again." She whispered lowly. "Don't fade away."

I looked at her, unable to speak. Wiping the away the tears of my own, I walked up to her and stood close to her.

"I won't aunty. Someone helped me come out of my misery. Now I'm going to be here for you and uncle." I gave her my word.

"I thank God for that person, my dear. I don't know what I would have done if we lost you too." She touched my cheek lovingly.

"I wouldn't be here if it weren't for him. And Willow too."

"How is she? How is Willow?"

"She's stronger than me. But I have to see her. I need to see her to be able to answer you."

"Alright. You do that."

We spoke about many things that afternoon. I conviced her to work on the garden. She said she would but she needed more time. While we spoke, Mr. Charles returned home. He hugged me and then the three of us continued our conversation. He was dealing with the loss too but in his own way. When we spoke about Cora, we felt the loss again but this time I didn't break down.

I understood that she was gone. I accepted that. I was still angry and hurt but I accepted that.

While we kept talking about her, Mrs.Charles became sadder.

"This must have started when all those pictures leaked out." She said dreadfully. I heard about it after her death but like Mr. Charles, I was too numb to feel anything. But hearing his wife say it now, something snapped in me.

Now, everything was different. I was no longer numb.

"Not now dear. We can't keep going on-"

"I will! Those people were horrible to her!! She just wanted to sleep Anthony!"

"She is gone now, Adelyn." He held her hands in his. "No matter what we say, who we blame, she is gone." He said softly. She nodded after a while.

"I know she's gone Anthony. I know that but she wouldn't have done it if-"

"Enough with the ifs." Mrs.Charles just nodded and allowed her husband to rub her back. He was afraid that she would get too worked up. That could lead to other problems and they didn't need any more problems.

"I have to go now. But I'll come back to visit soon." I stood up and hugged them both.

"I will text you guys whenever I can." I added.

Both of them thanked me for coming. Before I left I told Mr. Charles not to work so much and to spend some time with his wife. They needed each other. They only had each other.

Once I stepped out of Cora's house, a feeling of newness took over. I felt lighter as I walked under the bright Sun. After a long, long time, I looked up at the sunny sky and let the warmth wash over me.

I felt strengthened. By seeing Mr and Mrs Charles again, I have somehow unburdened myself from some of the guilt and pain.

Now, I was ready to face the world again. I am going to get back to my life and make sure I am there for Cora's parents.

I am going to start by getting something we all wanted.

Justice for Cora.

Mr. Charles was right. Nothing we do is ever going to bring her back. However, that doesn't mean a group of spoilt students get to treat people like shit and humiliate them for no reason. All those times they bullied her. All those times they taunted her. She said she could handle it but there was only so much a person could take.

I don't even know how much she hid from me and Willow. I bet there was more. I was ignorant to see what they were doing to her. The pills weren't the only thing that killed her.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Once I reached home, I called Rylen. Somehow, I felt the need to tell him about my day and what I did. I actually went out of my house and met people so it was big news.

He needed to know that. I always thought Rylen would be the last person I would ever call but ever since Christmas Eve, something changed between us.

A good change.

"Hello?"

"Amelia."

"It's really funny to hear you call me that."

"Well, you'll have to get use to it sooner or later."

"I see."

"I was waiting for your call." He said after a moment.

"You were?"

"About that night...."

The kiss?!

"If I made you...If I crossed the line I'm really-"

"It's okay." I quickly said, effectively cutting him off. For reasons unknown, I didn't want him to apologize for it. I didn't want him to regret anything.

"Really? Because you ran."

"Can you blame me? That was the first time I left the house in three weeks and suddenly.....that happened."

"Amelia-"

"But it's alright." I cut him off again.

"You sure?"

"Yes....I mean I guess? I don't know. Just don't apologize for it." I heard him laugh at the other end of the line.

Why was he laughing?

"You think I regret it?"

"You don't?" I asked him curiously.

"You intrigue me, Amelia. You always have." My heart rate spiked up again. What is with this boy?

"Why?" I asked blankly. I wasn't a very interesting person at all.

"How can someone be so smart and clueless at the same time." He sighed. "So why did you call me? Miss me already?"

What? No!

Oh gosh. Why did I call him again?

"I just wanted to let you know that I met them."

"Who?"

"Cora's parents. I met them and we just talked for the whole afternoon." I said softly.

"You did? That is.... that's great actually. I'm happy you did that." He spoke seriously. The humour in his voice was completely gone. "How do you feel now?"

"Better. Lighter actually. They weren't mad at me." I smiled to myself.

"Why the hell would they be? You just think too much."

"I do."

"Have you eaten?"

"Are you free tomorrow?" I asked him instead. I needed to do something and I didn't want to alone.

"Depends. Have you eaten?"

"I'm going to." I groaned inwardly and rolled my eyes. I did not need a granny right now.

"Yes I'm free tomorrow. Are you going to treat me?"

"No. I need to go somewhere and....."

How do I explain this? Why was it so hard to talk to him?

"And?"

"And...."

"You don't want to go alone?" He finished the sentence for me. I let out a sigh of relief.

"See. It's quite simple Amelia. Just say it. Say what you want to say."

"Okay. I want you to come with me." I whispered and gripped the hem of my shirt. This was harder than I thought. Maybe I should just go alone.

"I'll be there. Text me the time."

"Really?"

"Yes. Really."

"Thank you."

"You need to trust me. I won't hurt you. Not intentionally."

~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning.

Rylen was going to be here anytime soon. It was around nine in the morning. I had already ate my breakfast and I was just waiting for him.

I held the bouquet of cherry blossoms close to my chest as I waited for Rylen.

Not long after Rylen's car came into view. He stopped right before me. As soon as I got in, he eyed the flowers in my hand.

"We're visiting her." He simply stated.

"Yeah." I said nervously. After the funeral, I never had the guts to visit her grave. I couldn't bring myself to do it.

"Okay then."

It was a half an hour drive to the cemetery. The place was silent but not the eeri type. It was more of a peaceful kind. There wasn't anyone there apart from Rylen and I. Zero movement, zero noise. Rows and rows of tombstones were all lined up. I never imagined such a day. I never imagined that I would come here to visit my best friend.

It took everything in me to go around looking for her gravestone.

"Two rows on your right, Amelia." Rylen whispered from behind me. He knew this was extremely hard for me. I only made it obvious with my trembling fingers and my ragged breathing.

After finally spotting Cora's grave, I walked right up to it. It was a beautiful marble stone. Two angels on either side of the headstone, their hands clasped together in prayer. I looked up at the tombstone and saw her. It was a small picture of Cora. She was wearing a wide smile, full of joy. Her eyes were bright and happy as she smiled down at me.

The picture slowly turned blurry due to the tears in my eyes.

"You left too soon. I will never, ever understand why this had to happen. You were supposed to name your first child after me." Whispered to her tombstone angrily as the tears poured down my face.

"You and Noah were supposed to have one hell of a wedding ceremony." I sniffled and held back my sobs as I thought about all the things she will never be able to do.

"I am still angry at you for leaving me." I knelt to the ground and shook my head.

"But I accept it. I believe that you're in a better place." I hiccuped as more tears ran down my cheeks. Just then I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"I'm fine Rylen." I whispered to him.

"I know."

I looked at the headstone again, to see her smiling face. Her name was written below her picture. Then her the date of her birth and death. Below those were two Bible verses.

"Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted." Matthew 5:4

"Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace." Proverbs 3:17

I looked at the words and my heart became heavier. Taking a deep breath I continued to look at the stone. I slowly shifted my body and sat on the ground. As I was doing that, I realised that there were flowers placed inside both the stone flower holders on either side of the feet of the gravestone. On the left side was a single red rose. It was already wilting so it must have been a day or two. On the right side, there were a bunch of pretty purple orchids.

"Noah."

"Zach."

Rylen and I said simultaneously.

Rylen looked down at the orchids with a pained expression.

"He still comes here." He said softly.

"Zach?" Rylen nodded at my question. I never knew Zach had a huge crush on Cora. Turns out he really liked her but he never had the chance to actually say it to her.

"Noah liked her too?"

"He fell for her, Rylen. And she liked him too. They admitted their feelings for each other when we went out for the weekend." I said to Rylen. They never had the chance to properly become a couple.

If only Cora knew how many people loved her.

I placed my bouquet of cherry blossoms on her grave and said a little prayer. I wished her all the happiness and I hoped I would see her again someday.

Rylen and I spent about an hour in the Oak Tree Graveyard. After that we took a slow walk to his car.

"Rylen?"

"Hmm?" I looked down before asking him the hardest question I've ever asked anyone in all my life.

"C...can I hug you?" I whispered nervously.

He turned to me with a raised brow, clearly surprised by my unimaginable words. Yes, I just asked for a hug and that must have scared him.

His shocked reaction slowly turned into a calm one.

"Do you always ask for a hug?"

"Not really." I said awkwardly. Shaking his head at me, he stepped forwards and pulled me to his chest. I instantly wrapped my arms around him and held him close. He didn't let me go. He let me hug him for as long as I wanted to.

If I was being honest with myself, that was the warmest hug I've ever had. I couldn't even remember the last time I had anything close to a hug like this. This hug was something more.

And so I stayed in his embrace, not wanting to let go. I gripped the back of his jacket while I took comfort in his warmth.

"You're going to be okay Amelia. I promise." He then kissed the top of my head.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"We have one more stop right? Where to?"

"Emerald Valley. We're going to D. H. Alistair LLP. The law firm."

"Wait you're going to see your parents?"

"That's not the only reason Rylen."

"You might want to elaborate on that Amelia. I can't read your mind and you're freaking me out with that look on your face. What's going on?"

"I don't have a look on my face. I just feel a bit determined today."

"Oh shit. What are you up to?" He asked curiously.

"I want to see a lawyer there. He's a friend."

"Amelia what's your last name?" He quietly asked.

"Why are you asking me that all of a sudden." I asked him incredulously.

"You said your parents work in Emerald Valley. Now you're on your way to one of the country's most successful law firms and you are determined to simply see a lawyer like you own the place."

"Well..."

"What's your last name Amelia?" He asked again. But this time he was demanding. I guess he already knew and he just wanted me to say it with my own words.

"Something tells me you already know." He gripped the steering wheel the moment I said that. Rylen simple stared at the road for a long moment.

"You're an Alistair? Your father is the  Dorian H. Alistair?"

"Yes." I said with no emotion. Apparently, this fact about my life amazes everyone.

"Damn. When were you going to tell me?" 

"It's not that big of a deal. I'll say hi to them and then we're going to meet up with someone else."

"The mysterious lawyer. Why are we meeting this lawyer again?"

"Because I can't just sit around and do nothing Rylen. I just can't. Those people who bullied Cora shouldn't be allowed to live a carefree life with no consequence. Everything we do has a cost." I spoke angrily.

"You're bringing them down?"

"I am going to go all out. I won't rest until they pay the price. They treated her like shit. They degraded her and destroyed her image and self confidence. They crushed her and they were the reason why she wanted to go to sleep." I let out a heavy breath. "But she didn't just sleep." I whispered the last part.

"I know what you're going to say Rylen. No matter what I do, there's nothing that can bring Cora back to life. I should just try to move on-"

"Fuck that." I turned to face him. Taken aback.

"Fuck that. They destroyed her and I think they should face the consequences for their actions."

"Really? You're with me on this?"

"I am." He said slowly. I didn't know what it was but something made him sound guilty.

"Rylen what is it?" I asked him as gently as I could.

"You know sometimes when I think about what happened, I keep wondering if I could have done something. I shared a class with her. They would tease her there too but I never bothered-"

"Stop!" I yelled out, unable to control the tone of my voice. "Just stop Rylen. You know it's not your fault. You didn't even know her that well and if you're gonna feel guilty about something you had little to no knowledge of, then.....then what about me?" My voice shook as I tried to comprehend his words. "I knew they were horrible to her. I knew what Elizabeth and Gabrielle were doing. I could have done so many things to them but I stupidly chose to obey Cora and leave it alone."

"Amelia-"

"I carry the bigger responsibility Rylen! How could you even think of being guilty?"

"No you don't! That's not what I'm saying alright! What I meant was all of us. All of us meaning the student body. We all took it too lightly. Bullying is too normalised."

"Yeah.....yes it is." I sucked in a shaky breath and stared out the window.

"Amelia, you fought for her countless times. I have witnessed you do it. You couldn't have done anything more. And you were not ignorant, you just chose to respect Cora's wishes that's all. I don't want you to beat yourself up. Plus, she didn't tell you so many things."

"Yeah but the feeling won't go away that easily Rylen."

"I know. I get it. So just do what you have to do now."

"They're going to ask for concrete evidence. That's something-"

"We'll get. Don't worry about that. That's an easy task for me and my friends?" He dismissed me.

"Really?" Of course. He's group of friends looked like they were born into mischief. Some of his friends were famous for hacking into computers. They were known all around campus. And some were famous for fighting. Yeap, I did a bit of research on Rylen amd his little group.

"You underestimating us, nerd?"

I smiled to myself and looked out the window again. I didn't know the rest of them but I  wouldn't underestimate Rylen. Not anymore.

~~~~~~~~~

It took us an hour and a half to get to Emerald Valley. Once we were there, it was easy to spot my parents' building. It was a building with 60 floors and I had no idea why they needed all 60. I guess I just never bothered to find out. I was interested when I was very young but at the time, they were never there to answer my childish questions. And so as the years passed, I grew out of it.

"Their office is at the top floor Rylen. Just follow me alright."

"Yes ma'am. You're the boss." I scowled at him but he simply gave me a cheeky grin.

We walked straight towards the elevators. I hated the staff members who asked too many questions.

"How long do we have to be in this box? 60 floors is a lot." Rylen crossed his arms and grumbled once we stepped inside one of the elevators.

"Are you claustrophobic or something?"

"Do I have to be claustrophobic to be uncomfor-"

"Then stop complaining." He flicked my forehead in response. It was a hard flick and I bet it left mark.

"Would you stop doing that?"

"No."

"Fine, I'll just figure something out." I muttered under my breath. He have me a confused sideways glace. I worried him more than I intended to.

Once we heard the familiar ding, alpha queen bee let out a sigh of relief. "Fucking finally."

I shook my head and followed him out.

"Excuse me. Can I help the two of you?" We heard a robotic voice.

Here we go. I went up to the front desk which was near the elevators. There was a tall woman sitting behind the desk. Her dark hair was neatly tied into a bun and she was wearing a fitting suit over a white blouse. Her piercing blue eyes stared right through me.

It didn't faze me of course. I was used to this. They didn't know me.

"I am here to see Mr and Mrs Alistair-"

"Do you have an appointment? If you don't, I'm afraid I have to ask you to come back with an appointment letter." She so rudely cut me off. Rylen looked at her with a bored expression while he waited for my next words.

If only I could scrape off her eyeballs with that expensive, shiny pen she was holding.

Deep breaths AJ. Deep breaths.

"You must be new. That's why you don't understand. They're actually my parents. This will be quick." I tried so hard to keep the smile on my face.

"Oh, that's what they all say. Off you go now. And don't forget your friend." She bit back.

I calmed myself once again and leaned towards her. "You know what lady? Screw you."

With that I grabbed Rylen's hand and walked straight through the hallway on my right.

"Hey! Wait you can't-" I tuned her out and we kept walking until we stood before large mahogany double doors. They had my father's name on it. D. H. Alistair. He was also the CEO.

I knocked twice before a firm voice said come in. Opening the door Rylen and I walked in.

"Dad?"

"AJ? What are you doing here?" He stopped with his paper work and looked up, very surprised.

"Just came to see you guys, that's all." I muttered casually. " Where's mom?"

"She's inside her office talking to a very important client. You shouldn't bother her now, child."

"I didn't come here to bother either one of you dad." I stared at him. He looked at me for a second and then looked at Rylen. His eyes were full of detest. He was already looking at him from top to bottom, judging Rylen's character and his whole life based on how he saw him at that very moment.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Alistair." Rylen forced himself to greet my father.

"Who's he? You can't just bring anyone in here AJ. You know better."

"He's a friend of mine dad. Don't worry, he won't bite you." I said with a sweet smile. Rylen was already pissed with my father's attitude but he was uncomfortable too.

Suddenly the heavy doors burst open and the receptionist walked in. She looked chaotic and she was breathing as if she ran all over the building.

"Sir. I tried to stop these two but they refused-"

"It's alright. She is my daughter, AJ Alistair." My father stopped her. She looked at me with wide eyes.

"My apologies." She mumbled and left the office at once.

I stiffled a laugh but my father only gave me a stern look. "Why are you here AJ?"

"I wanted to see Mr. Kingsley. Is he here today?" My father looked at me curiously.

"Why do you want to see Victor?"

"Hmmm, to catch up?"

"Don't waste my time child."

"I am not wasting your time. Just tell me where he is and we'll be on our way. I only came up here to say hi." I said to him. I was starting to get annoyed. Why did he have to make me feel like I was bothering him everytime we met? He is my father. Couldn't he wear a smile for like one second? He didn't even say hello to me.

"AJ?" I turned around to see my mother walk out of her office.

"Hello mom." I gave her a small smile. She smiled at me and touched my shoulder before walking towards the coffee machine.

"She wants to meet Victor but she won't tell me why." My father informed my mother. She took a sip of her black coffee and looked at me. Then she scanned me from top to bottom.

Great.

"AJ what are you wearing? Are those holes in your jeans?! It's highly unprofessional." My mother chided like she was some highborn. "And who is this?"

"He is my friend. His name is Rylen." My mother stared at him for a short moment but that was enough to make Rylen more uncomfortable than he was before.

"Nice to meet you Mrs. Alistair." He said quickly.

"Where are you from Rylen?" She refused to greet him.

"Springfield's. It's near-" My mother held a hand up.

"I know where that is. It is a really small, old town right?"

"Big enough for me." He said with no emotion.

"Yes. I am sure. The crime rates there are simply terrible right dear?" She casually looked at my father. He gave her a firm nod. "I wouldn't want live in a dangerous place like that. What are your parents working as?" She continued.

I know exactly what she was up to. My mother had a way with her words. She will soon belittle him and I would be forced to lose another friend. She would make him answer all her ridiculous questions and make him realise just how small he was compared to her. That was what she always did.

She observed his tattoos and his clothes with pure disgust. I mean if she could look at me with distaste then who the hell was Rylen to her.

Knowing better than to let this conversation prolong, I stopped Rylen before he could open his mouth to answer her.

"Hey would you please wait outside? I'll call you when I'm done."

"I can't wait to leave this place, trust me." He eyed both my parents. They were not pleased with his tone but he didn't care. "However, are you sure you want me to go?" He searched my eyes.

"I'm sure." I said firmly. He nodded and left the office without saying anything further to my parents.

"What were you thinking young lady?! I hope you're not dating that boy." My mother scoffed at me while my father simple looked at me with disappointment.

"What are you talking about?" I raised a brow at them.

"Just look at him. Look at the way he dresses." My father grumbled.

"Did you hear the way he spoke to us? So arrogant. So disrespectful." My mother rolled her eyes. "They think they can just walk in here and act all mighty."

"He didn't really do anything. You guys were the ones who-"

"Watch your tone child." My father stopped me. By then my eyes began to sting. I haven't seen them in months. Maybe almost a year and this is how they talk to me. I only saw them a few times a year for as long as I could remember. And this is how they talk. As if I was some obstacle in their lives. As if I was some embarrassing burden that they had to carry with them. At least that was how they looked at me.

"Maybe your questions made him a little uneasy." I tried again, slowly.

"Uneasy?! What is he? Royalty? Your mother asked him a few simple questions. Yet he was extremely impolite. I don't know what kind of a family he grew up in." My father stood up.

"Don't you dare bring him home one day AJ. He won't make a suitable son-in-law. How insulting just to think about it." My mother chuckled as I stood there.

"He won't make a very good-" My mother then screamed in shock and rushed over to where my father stood. My father was glaring daggers at me but I didn't give a fuck. Not anymore.

I had thrown one his heavy files at the wall behind him.

"How dare-"

"Stop talking." I cut him off and slammed the table with my fist. Both if them were too stunned to say another work. I thought I was going to cry but whatever they said only infuriated me to the core. They neglected me for years and now all of a sudden they had an opinion on who I could be with?

"What's my favourite colour dad?" I looked at him dead in the eye. My father's hard gaze faltered for a second. Then he regained himself.

"Excuse me? Who do you think you-"

"What. Is. My. Favorite. Colour?" I demanded again.

"How should....I mean why would....I don't know." He stammered pathetically.

"What's my favourite food mom?" I looked at her and then at the two of them.

"What's my favourite TV show? What do I like to do when I'm bored? What's my favourite drink? Did you know I was in the debate club in school? Do you know I can bake? Did you know I graduated at the top of my class hoping that the two of you would show up? Did you know I joined the debate team hoping that the two of you would be a little proud of me? Because I was doing something like what you were doing. Did you know any of that? Yes? No?" When they remained silent, I gripped my hair.

"Well, Did you?!!" My eyes stung again but I blinked back the tears. I couldn't break down now. No.

"AJ I think you're not feeling very well." My mother stepped forward.

"No mom! Step back. I think I've never felt better. I am just so fed up with myself. There was always something missing in my life. I never knew what that was so I was always quiet about it. That boy made me realise that it was human touch. After that I began to think. When was the last time either one of you hugged me?  Have you ever kissed me? Ever?" My voice shook.

"Why did you make me?" I whispered. "E...even if I was accidental you still had to have felt something right? But no. I was raised by nannies. Once I was a little older, Mr and Mrs Charles were there for me." I looked away from them.

"Do you know who they are?" I asked my parents who remained standing against the wall.

"Of course you don't. They had a daughter named Cora. She was my best friend in the whole world. She was the one who died." My lips wobbled as I kept talking. "You know I almost died with her. I was already dead on the inside. So I left campus to come back home. I didn't know why I expected you guys to be there for me but I did. Another mistake." I took a deep breath and looked at them. Really looked at them.

They were stunned, dumbfounded. Like they never had a clue as to what they did or what they didn't do. And someone was finally giving them a clue.

"I will no longer be a bother to the two of you." I said with a firm finality in my voice. "I came here looking for a good lawyer so I can get justice for Cora's death. She was bullied. And that boy you hate so much, well he saved my life. I wouldn't be standing here if it weren't for him. I never said that we were together because we're not. Even if we were, I wouldn't come to you asking for permission. If I wanted to be with him, I will."

With that I walked out.

I found Rylen sitting on one of the sofa's near the front desk. He sat with is hands clasped together and with his elbows resting on his thighs. He only looked up when I stood directly in front of him.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I smiled at him.

"Where to, Ms. Alistair?" I rolled my eyes and walked towards the same lady behind the counter.

"Is Mr. Kingsley here today?" She looked at me nervously before giving me an answer.

"He's here Ms. Alistair. Second office to the left. 57th floor."

"Thank you." I said to her and we were back in the elevators.

"Whatever happened in there, was it good? I heard a loud bang." Rylen muttered beside me.

"I guess it was good. The loud bang was me-"

"Yes I figured that one on my own Amelia." Rylen chuckled. I elbowed him right before we reached the 57th floor.

This floor was much busier. There were staff members and secretaries walking all over the place carrying files or books. Rylen and I walked through the busy workers and ended up in front of Mr. Kingsley's office. The doors were all glass so he saw me coming.

He was slightly shorter than my father. He had a fair complexion, black hair and light blue eyes. His thick glasses would normally hide away his eyes and that made him look friendlier. He would never wear his glasses in court. He always stared people down with a cold, piercing gaze which only he could give. Mr. Kingsley was in his early forties. A well known lawyer with a lot of drive.

"AJ! It's been a long time." He gave me a quick hug and patted my shoulder. He knew just how uncomfortable hugging was for me but still, he was a hugger behind all that grit and toughness and there was no changing him. He said one day he would make me love hugs as much as he does.

"Hey Mr. Kingsley. How are you?"

"I'm good. Really good. Just won a big case today and who's your clueless friend over there?" I chuckled and introduced Rylen to him.

"You know AJ, you can just say boyfriend." My face heated up as he said those words and instead of denying him, Rylen simply smirked at me.

"We're just friends!"

"Well, everything starts with friendship. So am I supposed to believe that you simply came here because you missed me?"

"I'm afraid not." I said sheepishly. He then told Rylen to take a seat and offered him coffee. Alpha queen bee was grateful that he had something to do.

"How can I help my nightmarish boss's daughter?" I smiled at his kind face before recalling why I came here.

That made my smile falter and I was lost in those horrifying thoughts all over again.

Cora. The pills. Her sleeping form. The hospital. Her parents. The bullying.

Everything fought it's may into my head.

"Amelia." I gasped as I felt a gentle hand over mine. "Hey, you're okay." Rylen added while he gave my hand a light squeeze. I slowly calmed my heavy breathing and looked at Mr. Kingsley again.

I felt bad right after because I've never seen him this upset. His eyes were filled with worry as he observed me.

"Do you need time to recollect your thoughts? Take all the time you need AJ. I'm not going anywhere. I want you to know that." Mr. Kingsley immediately called his secretary and told her to cancel all his appointments for that day.

I took about ten minutes to recollect my thoughts and to compose myself.

"I'm ready now. I think." I called after Mr. Kingsley who was patiently waiting for me while he sat on the couch on the other side of his office. As soon as he heard me, he walked over to his desk and sat opposite the two of us.

"I had a best friend. Her name was Cora. She passed away recently. That's why I'm here."

"Cora? The one you spend all your time with? The reason why you were adamant about not moving closer to Emerald Valley?"

"You knew her?" I asked surprised. How could he have known her?

"Not really. But here's what I do know. When you were around seven, your parents wanted to buy a house closer to the office. They couldn't do that because you didn't want to move away from a certain friend. You were quite stubborn about it. AJ, you were always obedient to your parents and you never asked for anything. However, moving here was a big no for you. No one could convince you otherwise." I gave him a sad smile as he spoke. My throat clogged up as I remembered shouting at my parents, saying I wasn't going to leave Oaksville. And that I would never speak to them if they separated me and Cora.

"That's the one. That's the girl who died." Mr. Kingsley reached for my hand and held it.

"I am so sorry to hear that. I truly am. I'm sorry you had to lose her. She must have been a wonderful young woman."

"She was."

"Go on." He gently prompted me.

I took a deep breath and told him everything there was to know about Cora and her short time in our university. There were things he probably didn't need to know but I told him anyway. That was the thing about this man. He was such a good listener and you would just feel comfortable around him. So I told him everything. How the bullying started, how she felt, what we tried to do, our complain to the dean, those horrible students who picked on her, everything. Rylen said a few things too but after that he let me do the talking. Lastly, I told him about how I discovered Cora in our room. It was gut wrenching to speak about it all over again but Rylen gave me the strength I needed. He was with me and that was enough.

"When I tried to wake her, she wouldn't wake up. Her body was cold.....th...there was no pulse. I knew she was gone but...I didn't want to believe it." I looked at my hands and just stopped talking. There was nothing more to say.

"Your friend took the pills to go to sleep right? That was her intention."

"Yes. That was what the Dr told me." I said.

"And she started taking the pills when the bullying got worse?"

"That was what Willow said. Um, Willow is another one of our friends."

"Okay. From what I gather we can look into it and do some digging. Do not get your hopes up. We need a lot of concrete evidence to connect the bullying to her death. That's the hard part. The harder part is to actually get this case to the court."

"We understand. She went through cyber bullying as well. There must be tons of hate messages there." I muttered remembering what Mrs. Charles said.

"Well, I guess we can work with investigators once we speak to the Dr who did the post mortem. He will be able to give us enough details in order for us to be allowed to investigate further."

"So you will be able to punish them? You will be able to make them face the law?" Rylen asked.

"Like I said, we need enough concrete evidence-"

"We can get that."

"Leave that to us young man. We have investigators to investigate. I don't want you or your friends snooping around and ruining our chances." Rylen's eyes widened at what Mr. Kingsley said.

"I knew I've seen you before. Tell Marco I can still argue and give him a life sentence if he ever crosses the line again." Rylen nervously rubbed the back of his neck and eyed Mr. Kingsley. He obviously wanted the older man to shut his mouth because I was there.

"You guys know each other huh?" I stated bluntly.

"I guess you could say that. You need to keep an eye on this one AJ. At all times." He warned me about Rylen.

"I know." I grinned at Mr. Kingsley. Rylen almost rolled his eyes at the sight of us.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Thank you for everything Mr. Kingsley. I hope we win this. We have to."

"We will. I will do whatever it takes to win. And you know me, I always win." He said confidently. I waved goodbye and soon, Rylen and I were out of the building.

"Rylen-"

"We are going to eat. I'm starving. Eat and then we go on from there." He dragged me to the car.

We stopped at a pizza place and ordered two large pepperoni pizzas with extra cheese.

"Mmmm, this is amazing." I moaned in pleasure. I didn't know that I was starving until I took the first bite. Rylen stopped eating and just stared at me. I rolled my eyes knowing full well why he was looking at me like that.

"I did it because the pizza is amazing. Everyone does it." I huffed and continued to stuff the food in my mouth. He chuckled at how I ate.

"See, this is how you actually eat. I was right."

"Okay Mr. Prim and proper."

"Stop making up stupid names for me Amelia." He gritted out.

"What? They suit."

"No they fucking don't. And where's our next stop?"

"Home. I guess."

"Okay then."

"Hey Rylen, you can actually go home. I can take the bus back. That way you don't have to drive so far. Just to drop me off."

"It's no problem."

"But you'll have to-"

"I'm driving you home because I want to." He said firmly, leaving no room for arguments. That wouldn't usually work on me but I was oddly happy that he wanted to drive me back.

"Thank you." I said sincerely.

~~~~~~~~

"Any plans for the rest of the day?" He turned to look at me.

"I think I'll just watch a movie and sleep early tonight. How about you? Have you started with any matches yet?"

"Next month. Around the same time our classes start."

Right. Classes. It was going to be next month soon.

"What's wrong?"

"How do you know Mr. Kingsley?"

"I've had a few run ins with the authority that's all." By the sound of his tone, he was begging me not to ask any more questions.

"I see." I kept quiet after that. He could tell me if he wanted to.

"I was at the wrong place at the wrong time. The run ins were due to the fact that I was with a few assholes."

"Okay." I giggled at his awkwardness.

"Why are you laughing at me."

"I'm laughing at your poor attempt to explain things. You sound like you want to tell me a small part of it but actually you don't."

"Yeah that's it. And it's not much to say either. Stop smirking at me." He grumbled.

I laughed all the more.

Rylen looked at me and shook his head, obviously annoyed by my unattractive laugh.

~~~~~~~~~~~

"And we're here." He said once he stopped in front of the gates.

"You know what? I have to call Willow and Noah. Especially Willow." I said thoughtfully. If she could come by tomorrow, that would be good.

"You're doing a lot in such a short time. Are you sure it's the right decision. You were very down just a few days ago. I'm not saying that you should stay that way. I'm just-"

"I know exactly what you're trying to say and I know that you're worried. But it's okay. So far, all this is helping me. I'm okay now. I'm doing much better. Plus, I have to talk to Willow."

"Okay then. If that's how you feel."

"Thank you for everything Rylen. Thank you for being here with me."

"I would feel a lot better if you would stop thanking me. I do it because I want to." He firmly stated.

"Okay, so I'll see you around." Before I turned away, he gently held my chin up and kissed my cheek.

"Good night Amelia Jewel." There it was again. Damn him!!

I could feel my whole body warm up to his one, simple touch. I knew my face was red and that made me feel more embarrassed.

"A...are you blushing?" Rylen whispered. My face heated up even more.

"You c...can't keep d..doing that." I stuttered.

"Why? I like kissing you good night." He smiled at me. And it made my heart rate spike up. The tender gaze he gave me almost made me melt. How could anyone look like that?

"I have to go." I quickly said and turned around to open the car door.

"Please don't be embarrassed Amelia. Please don't run away."

"I'm not."

"Yes, you are." He held my hand to stop me from rushing out. "I'm know you're afraid."

"I'm not afraid! I...I'm not used to this." I looked everywhere trying to avoid eye contact with him.

"I understand. You don't like it?"

"I don't know. I'm not used to it." I repeated my words.

"Look at me." I shook my head and sat still.

"Amelia, look at me." I sighed and slowly looked up at him. He brought his face closer to mine. That's when I couldn't breathe properly. I became anxious and I could feel my heart beating in my ears.

"I'm going to kiss you again. Tell me how you feel." I remained frozen in the seat.

Rylen came closer and placed his lips on my right cheek again. His lips were soft and warm against mine. He let the kiss linger for a moment before pulling away.

He looked at me softly and waited.

"How did it feel?" I stared into his eyes when he asked me that. When I didn't immediately answer him, his beautiful grey eyes searched mine. He wanted me to say something. Anything.

I touched the spot where he had kissed me and stared back at him.

"Soft." I mumbled after a few moments. He titled his head ever so slightly and watched me with interest. "It was affectionate and warm." I added in a low whisper. It was as if I was talking to myself, explaining it to myself.

Without saying anything further, he reached forward and placed a small kiss on my forehead. He then tucked a lose strand of hair behind my ear. "It's getting late Amelia."

"Y..yes." Before I got out, I looked at him again.

"Please drive safely."

"You know I have awesome driving skills." He winked at me.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Once I was inside my house, I immediately missed him. I spent the whole day with him and now I missed him. I must be going crazy.

You will see him soon. Quit whining.

I then thought about what Mr. Kingsley said. Was I still friends with Rylen? Do friends kiss each other like this? I know that it was only on the cheek but it still felt intimate.

No. Friends don't kiss each other they way he kissed me.

Stop thinking too much AJ. You have things to do.

Shaking out of my thoughts I grabbed my phone and called Willow. I didn't want to wait any longer. It has already been too long.

"Hello?" I squeaked out.

"Look who finally decided to call."

"Are you free tomorrow?"

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How's the online classes coming up? More stress? Less stress? I hope you all have good teachers and lecturers.