You readers may be wondering if I stopped the kiss. If I gently pushed Marisa away and asked why she kissed me. After all, I have a huge crush on Dot and wanted to know if she felt the same way.

The thing is that...I did not stop the kiss. Marisa did. I did not mind her kissing me. In fact...I liked it. I think that I liked the kiss because my feelings had changed. I did not know if it was for the best. I only knew that...I wanted to be with Marisa. I had feelings for her now.

I knew that I was falling in love with her from the very moment that we met. I loved everything about Marisa - and still do. Her looks and personality. What she had on and her accent. She was so smart and beautiful. The most beautiful girl that I have ever seen.

I did not want to lose Marisa, and I was confident that she did not want to lose me either. That kiss proved it. That kiss proved that she had feelings for me too. Why else would she kiss me?

Ten seconds after she kissed me, Marisa quickly pulled her lips away from mine and wiped them with the back of her hand. The expression on her pretty face told me that she was embarrassed. Her cheeks were as red as a tomato, and she was not smiling.

"What is the matter?" I asked. "Is something bothering you?"

She shook her head without looking at me. "Nothing is bothering me, Mike. Nothing at all."

I put my hands in the pockets of my pants. "You sure?"

"I am sure."

Her eyes were now locked on me as she ran her fingers through her hair. "I am sorry."

"You mean that you are sorry for kissing me?"

She nodded. "I know that it was wrong of me. I should have asked for your permission before I...I kissed you, but..." Tears formed in her eyes. "...I-I was afraid that I would never get the chance."

"You would never get the chance to kiss me?"

She nodded again and held out an open hand. "Please. Give me the gun."

"Give you the gun? Why?"

She sniffed and wiped her tears. "Do you trust me?"

"Marisa. I do not think that you are okay."

Her voice became stern. "Answer the question. Please. Do you trust me?"

"Of course I do."

She flashed me a small smile. "That is all that I needed to hear. Thank you, Mike."

I held out the gun. "But can you not explain to me why you want the gun?"

She hesitated. "...let us just say that Jackie's father will do as much as he can to make sure that you go to jail."

I was taken aback by her statement. "Why...why would he want me in jail?"

Marisa hesitated again. "...he will do whatever it takes to keep it a secret."

"Keep what a secret?"

She opened her mouth, but all that escaped was a gasp. She turned her attention to the group of cops who had entered the train station. She turned back to me, and I noticed that her open hand was shaking now.

Marisa lowered her voice to a whisper. "Mike. Give me the gun before those officers arrest you."

I dropped the gun in her hand, and she clutched it and tucked it away.

"What are you going to do with the gun?" I asked.

"I have not gotten there yet. Perhaps that I will toss the gun in a nearby river." She gave me another hug. "The officers will ask you what happened. Whatever you do, do not tell them that you shot the suspects."

"But...would that not be lying?"

"It is not lying if you are protecting yourself from some dude who wants to do you harm."

"Are you referring to Jackie's father?"

"Yes." She pulled away. "I need to go now."

"Wait."

"What is it, Mike?"

"Carlos, Dot, and the other hostages are witnesses. All of them saw that I shot the bad guys."

"You said that you trust me, right?"

"Yes."

"Then I suggest that you do just that."

Even though that I was skeptical, I did what I was told and lied to all the officers. I did not want to lie to them. After all, I am not a liar. The only times that I have lied was when I did not want to hurt anyone's feelings. But I never thought that I would lie to the police.

I would be lying to you if I did not say that I was guilty about lying to the police. I felt like those shooters. I felt like a crook. But I needed to trust Marisa. I could trust her, right? She and I are friends. Maybe more than just friends. She has no reason to betray me and Carlos and Dot...right?

After the police interviewed each of us, my friends and I met outside of the train station and discussed what in the world just happened.

"Where is Marisa?" Carlos asked.

"She left minutes ago," I replied. "She told me that she has an errand to run. I do not know what the errand is, so do not ask about that."

I hated lying to them.

Dot showed the glasses. "I still have these glasses. You think that we should continue the mission?"

Carlos shook his head. "It is getting late, and this train station is swarming with the police and detectives. We should wait until tomorrow."

"I agree with Carlos," I said. "Besides, we want to do it when Marisa is with us. She is the only one who knows how to use the glasses."

Dot took my hand into hers. "Then it is settled."

Why was Dot holding my hand?

"Then I had better get home," Carlos said.

Dot turned to me. "Can we talk for a bit?"