Melody sobbed as she tried to get out of the forest to get rid of terrible pain in her heart. Everything in her body felt hurt. She kept calling herself stupid for even having feelings for that jerk. Wiping her tears and snots to try to calm down, she felt everything shatter. She bumped into someone's chest as she bolted forward. Melody looked to see Jim, covered head to tow in glittering snow.

"Not a word, Mel. I don't want to hear about it... But you gotta admit it was funny how Sam got all that glitter on her." He chuckled, only stopping when he saw her red puffy eyes and cheeks. "Hey what's wrong?" Melody tried to play it off. Not wanting to worry her friends.

"N-Nothing. I got a bit lost since... You know you and Sam always-." Jim paused her, looking over her wrist.

"What happened here?" He ran his gloves over the red and white markings, and she pulled it away.

"Nothing, it's fine..." Jim knew she was lying. She was never any good at it. He began wrapping his scarf over the damage.

"Well, it's gonna look nasty if you don't do something. Jane has-." Melody hugged him with all the strength she could muster.

"Please don't tell the others! I don't want them to get in any trouble!" Having her tears risen again not even if she is mad at Hercules, she still doesn't want to see him get hurt. Jim's eyes softened at her state, hugging her to calm her could hear her broken sobs rubbing her back.

"Okay okay I won't tell anyone... But you need to tell me what happened." He felt her head throbbing as she sobbed. Jim listened to her, wiping away her tears. Melody explained through broken and hiccups of breath.

"You're not going to hang out with them anymore, right?" he asked her. Melody nodded and sneezed. Jim pulled her close to warm her with his body heat. "Come on, let's head inside. I'm sure Jane's mom will be fine if we head over there for a little." Melody agreed with him.

When everyone finally found each other, they agreed Melody was better off inside a warm house. Mrs. Darling was happy to let her daughters friends stay, and tend to Melody's wrist in private. Jim didn't want to leave her side, though.

"How did you get this? Were you just playing too rough? " she asked her as she started applying ice to the area. Melody hesitated, nervous about lying to an adult. Jim butted in, already having a story prepared

"She got her hand stuck in a tree hole. She wanted to grab an acorn or something," He shrugged. "I had to yank her out pretty hard."

"I should yank his shoulder out of place. At least she didn't dislocate her wrist or something." Sam grumbled, and Jane nudged her.

"You need to stop joking like that or else people will take you seriously" She puts her boots by the fire to dry.

"Luckily it's only a bruise. Had you pulled any harder and she could have a dislocated wrist." Wendy finished bandaging Melody's wrist, ice still atop it. The 12-year-old bit her lip, relieved that she was okay. Jim knew she was more damaged emotionally though.

"I'm glad it's not bad. Thank you Missus Darling." Melody smiled.

"Try not to get stuck in anything else. You know your father only has the heart for so much." Mrs. Darling sounded like Melody's own mother. Melody nodded and smiled bright.

"We're gonna die though," Peter whispered to Jim. Jim rolled his eyes, wondering who Melody could have been talking about.

The whole of them were at the fireplace even Jane's little brother joined in, pestering them. Most of them were taking a nap, filled with warm drinks and zapped of energy. Jim and Melody were sitting close to the open fire, hands grasping half-drunk apple cider.

"I know why they did it... But it hurts... I feel so torn about it," Melody took a long sip of her drink. The damage was irreversible at this point. She didn't know if even an apology could salvage their friendship. "I wish I had just stayed with you guys. I wouldn't have gotten hurt then, and things might be different." Jim prodded her cheek with his thumb.

"No. You would have found out. Things like that spread like wildfire. You did what was best and cut them off." He explained to her. "Besides, if they were your friend, they shouldn't have done that in the first place. It's not your fault. "Melody acknowledged his response with a nod. It felt nice to have someone understand and defend her. She rested her head on his shoulder, enjoying his warmth. Jim felt a shiver run up his spine, but didn't dare move. The moment was too precious to move her.

"Thank you... It means a lot. Sometimes I wonder if I'm good enough to be your friend." she ran her finger over the rim of her mug. Jim shrugged, remembering that's all they were. Friends.

"Pssh, I'm not that good. I'm a bad boy. If anything, you're too good for me." Jim wrapped his arm over her shoulder, pulling her closer into his chest. Both of them stared at the fire while they snuggled together.

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

Hercules slammed his bedroom door shut and screamed into his pillow. His emotions were everywhere. He lost the only person who was important to him. After screaming further, he ripped open his backpack and rummaged around for the gift. He pulled it out and glared at it for a long few minutes. A locket with a music sign on the front. Clawing it open, he saw a picture he had taken when he first got his phone. A note on the other side with the words "For My Best Friend." Hercules stared at it for a while before tossing it across the room, and laying on his bed. Pegasus whimpered and hesitated in the doorway. Hercules calmed down, noticing how scared his poor boxer was. He ushered him close and brushed him with care.

"I'm fine buddy... It's just been a terrible day."

Over time in her school and visiting her home from time to time she ool. As Hercules promised, he never sent her anything. She felt a strange pang of guilt in her heart, though she didn't understand or know why. She hadn't done anything wrong. She was in the right, and he was the one who needed to apologize.

As school continued, she learned to stop hyperfixating on it until it was just a faded memory. Locked in the back of her mind where she could forget about it.

Hercules was at the beach with Pegasus while watching the sunset going down. It has been a year since he had spoken to her or even seen her. Pulling the locket out of his pocket, he stared it over, considering if he really should do this. His dog whimpered after seeing the familiar picture of Melody. Hercules got up, wiping himself clean of sand and looked to the ocean. He threw the locket as hard as he could.

~~~~~~~~~~

Melody finished telling her story to her friends who were completely quiet until Sam broke the silence.

"So he's been nothing but an ass to you. I'm gonna break his neck-." She was only paused by one Jim interjecting.

"That's not the point of this, Sam." Jim pinched his forehead. Sam groaned and laid back on the couch, away from the now dwindling fire.

"Well, I'm glad you got out of that abusive friendship. Sounds like hell!" Peter commented. Jane gave him a look.

"What?" Jane sighs. "Well that would explain some things but... I don't know, it doesn't feel whole, right? Hercules must be able to fill in some of the gaps in your story. What if you two talked things out?"

"I dunno, it might just happen all over again." Melody yawned, her head on Jim's warm and comforting shoulder. Jim rubbed the top of her head.

"Get some rest in now before we drive home. I don't want to have to carry you upstairs and watch your dad blow up." Jim teased. Melody hummed in response, immediately passing out. Sam felt ready to explode with frustration.

"Dude, how are you not pissed off? This guy broke Melody so badly. I thought you'd be livid." Sam whispered. It wasn't like he was happy about it, but he didn't want to be angry either. He saw the damage, he knew what happened.

"I don't know. Because Melody would be even more upset about me being angry than her?" He explained, laying Melody down on a spare towel.

"So, you're never going to get pissed about your girlfriend being abused?"

"Hercules was angry and lashed out at her. Getting angry at him will only make it worse."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he was jealous of you. Remember how he reacted when you two, y'know, came out as a couple?" Peter shrugged, eyeing Jim. Sam avoided him eyes.

"Probably. But I can't speak for him. He has to respect the code of the bonfire." Jim reminded him, stroking Melody's back.

"Whatever you say, dude." Peter lay back down to relax. Everyone agreed that, after that story, now was the best time to go home and sleep the night off.

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

Ever since the Mall incident, Melody had been in a funk. She tried to hide it from her family so she wouldn't make them worried about her. It backfired, and they ended up worrying more. She holed herself in her room, inconsolable and depressed.

Even Hercules' parents worried about their son's health. He stopped sleeping and eating properly, he didn't even talk much. His friends tried to console him, to tell him to just wait a little longer and Melody will fall for him. After the winter break has passed, everyone started coming back to school.

Melody still hadn't seen Hercules, much less spoken to him. Any question or conversation he started, she would answer in as few words as possible. He could feel the glare from Sam burning through his skull whenever he tried to talk to Melody. Most people assumed it was inner circle drama. "Hercules is angry because he got friend-zoned." and "Dude got blocked because she already had a boyfriend." were the most popular rumors. But even they found it weird how unemotional Melody was around him.

Hercules had been falling behind in his football practice, even. The ball kept slipping from his fingers, and he kept slipping and bashing his face into the ground. He used to be the star quarterback, but now he felt like a rookie to the team. To the point their coach had to take him aside for a word. Humiliating.

"What's wrong with you kid? You look like you got hit by a truck!" Coach scowled at Hercules. The sophomore sighed, rubbing his neck to find an excuse. Not even an excuse would suffice at this point.

"Just had a rough week, that's all. I'll be on my A-game soon, Phil" He shrugged, a half-truth at best.

"Are you sure you're not still upset about that one girl you liked? What's her name?- Melanin. No- Melody?" He saw Hercules flinch at the name. Phil could see how guilty he looked when he had mentioned the name.

"How do you know..?" Hercules hesitated.

"Word spreads fast kid." He then sat down next to Hercules. "Now tell me, kid what's going on?" Phil asked in genuine concern about him. Finally giving in sighs heavily looking at the ground Hercules paused for a moment.

"I... I messed up real bad. I spoke something that I shouldn't have, she heard it and well...we haven't spoken then. I do care for her and I'm afraid that I'll end up losing her again." He finished explaining himself.

"Oh boy... Listen, Hercules, I'm not an expert on girls. But sometimes you can't control your feelings. You blurt things out without thinking, and things slip out-"

"I said she just replaced me with a cheap copy," Hercules blurted. The coach stared at him in shock.

"You're kidding, right?" Phil asked. Hercules looked away, completely ashamed. The couch groaned and pinched his brow. "Hercules-"

"I know, I know. I should've been careful with what I had said... It was such a stupid move and... It's not like I hadn't learned that already."

Phil looked at him confused. "Are you telling me that you've done this before? Have you tried to apologize to her, at the very least?" Hercules shook his head no. "There's the problem kid. You have to apologize, genuinely apologize. She might accept it, she might not. That's not for me to say."

Hercules groaned. "You're right... But I don't know if she'll even look at me." Phil patted his back to cheer him up. Hercules thought for a moment before a commotion broke out.

"Give the ball back!"

"Oh, I'm giving the ball alright." He heard a familiar voice. Hercules looked up to see Sam, who had already thrown the football that was going towards him. "Try to catch this, beefcake!" She screamed as loud as she could. The football smacked him in the face before he could fully register what happened. His head smacked on the ground as hard as possible, and he blacked out. He felt like he deserved it.

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

"-awake yet?" He heard his coach's voice, trying to open his eyes and saw the blurry face of Phil. Hercules felt his head pound with dizziness as he came to, his eyes trembling.

"Hey kid, how many fingers am I holding?" His couch lifted his hand to the poor dizzying vision of the teen, who struggled for a second.

"Six...?" He questioned raising his brows. Phil shrugged his shoulders.

"Eh, good enough. Take it easy, kid. That girl threw that ball pretty hard, you've been out for half an hour." He felt the cool drip of the melting ice against his forehead as he sat up, continuing to press it close. He was in the nurses room, he could at least glean that.

"Maybe you should have her join the team instead of me." Hercules tried to make a joke but stopped smiling when Phil squinted.

"Okay sure the kid got some talent but I'm not gonna let some kid get to play football if they act like-." Phil stopped when he heard the squeak of the door.

Sam took a deep breath before speaking. "I'm sorry for throwing the football to your face... Even though you deserved- Ow!" Melody elbowed her arm before she could finish her sentence.

"You promised." Melody pouted. Sam rubbed her arm glaring at Hercules.

"It's fine, Melody. It isn't a big deal. Besides, I can't blame her anyway." Hercules spoke up, smiling meekly.

"Great, go on, princess. Talk to him, and then we're leaving," Sam replied but Melody squirmed.

"Actually I want to speak to him, alone."

"But-" Sam was going to argue with Melody, but she stopped. Sighing in frustration, Sam acquiesced. Phil gave the boy a knowing look before finally leaving the two teens alone.

Melody adjusted the ice pack on Hercules' bruised eye. The ginger bit his lip, hissing at the pain. Melody let him adjust it instead. There was a silence between them for a moment. "I'm very sorry about Sam's behavior. She shouldn't have done that to you. I've always tried to tell her no violence but-." Hercules stopped her from mumbling, not wanting her to stress out.

"It isn't your fault. It's mine." He said knowing the whole mess was his alone. But Melody shook her head refusing it. "No it was mine if I just left and haven't listened to it then none of this would happen...and I mean everything." Looking down at her feet finally giving in the biggest issue. Hercules took a pause for a moment trying to get the words out he needed to say.

"I know I really messed up back then. I admit, I didn't want to remember but I still feel the guilt to this day not only hurting you but I broke your trust. I know you didn't want people to know about... That." He saw her flinch, her eyes now staring back down at the floor. She knew what he was referring to. Losing her own mom at a young age affected her and she never talked about it to anyone but him. It was something that hit her family hard and never recovered entirely from.

"I'm so sorry and I get it if you don't want to forgive me but-." He clutched the seat underneath him afraid that he'll lose her for good. "I still want to be your friend. You mean so much to me and if I can take back every stupid things I said. I would, but I can't. I can't turn back time, Melody... And I'm sorry for everything that happened. I shouldn't have gotten jealous when you're not even mine. " He finally finished. Looking down, not wanting to see her reaction.

Hercules heard footsteps coming towards him then felt her arms around him. "You're forgiven...and I'm sorry too if I told you about it sooner than you wouldn't get hurt" Melody's tears rose again.

"I've missed you so much ever since that day and... I wanted to talk about it when I saw you again but I didn't want to risk it if it would end badly." She also admits to herself. The jock hugs his best friend back with one arm while the other is still on his eye.

"I'm still thinking about it... I still want to be your friend but..." She gulped a bit before continuing. "I'm not so sure if right now is a good time yet... I appreciate that you've apologised. But I still don't know."

Melody was getting her stuff out from her locker then saw a wrapped gift, curious about how it got there. She grabbed it then started to open it. Gasping, she looked it over, noticing how much cleaner it was. Looking around in her locker if there was any note inside but nothing. that this time she can finally open this mysterious locket. Before Melody can open it her group of friends came along.

"Yo Mel come on we're gonna be late don't want to hear my brother complaining at me all day!" Peter waved at her while other friends were ahead of him while Jim waited for her. Melody put the locket away, deciding to open it later.

Jim greeted her with a kiss on her cheek. "Shall we princess?" he asked her with loving eyes.

Melody felt the warmness on her cheek and giggled a bit. "We shall, space cadet."

"Alright, enough smooching you dorks. Let's go before I barf." Sam groaned. Holding her boyfriend's hand, they started to catch up with her gang.