Two days ago Ada had spoken with the police, leaving out only what she knew Tom would have, such as her going to his apartment that night and them going on a road trip for furniture. She didn't deny their friendship, only toned it down a bit.

Ada decided not to go back to school until this whole thing was figured out. If Tom wasn't cleared, she wasn't sure what her next move would be. She wouldn't be able to make it through another school day without him there.

Yesterday, her Nonni arrived home from her vacation. Nonni and Ada's parents had stayed awake until the early hours of the morning, crying and drinking and laughing, before crying some more. Their tiredness and hangovers were obvious in their appearance, yet they still insisted on a shopping trip a few towns over.

Ada walked down the sidewalk, sandwiched between her mother and Nonni. If the shopping trip was in her town, she would have declined. She'd tried going grocery shopping the day before and left empty-handed, the stares from everyone becoming too much to handle.

Ada was sure the gossip had still traveled this far, but no one knew who they were, so Ada could finally leave the house without feeling the eyes of the world on her. Ada was used to blending in. Now everything about her life felt like a damned soap opera.

It was nice to get away, even if only going a few towns over. It was warm enough for the businesses to leave their front doors open and with every door they passed, a new genre of music played. Passing the restaurants was her favorite, the smells lingering out the open doorways and surrounding her, along with the chatter and laughter that seemed to come with the booze being served inside. Everyone was in high spirits here with their spring fever. The shops were planting in their flower boxes, the town workers were putting out the garbage cans painted by the local artists. Some artist's were doing chalk drawings on the sidewalks.

"You should do something different with your hair, Ada," Nonni said from next to her.

She wasn't sure where that had come from. "Why?"

"You've had that same damn hair cut for more than half your life, that's why," Nonni replied.

She had a point there. Ada couldn't remember the last time her hair was different. When she went in, it was for a trim; nothing more. She always kept it her natural honey blonde hair color and always the same length, down to the chest and very few layers.

Ada took her hair out of its high bun. She rarely wore it down. With how often she worked and had her nose in a book studying, it was just in the way when she wore it down. She grabbed the blonde ends and held them up to view. She needed a cut anyhow. "If someone around here can take me without an appointment, then sure. Why not?" she answered with a shrug.

"And highlights," her mother added, distracting Ada from her thoughts.

"There's one across the street!" Nonni yelled before grabbing Ada's hand and pulling her into the street. Sure, it was empty, but the woman hadn't even looked.

Ada was already beginning to regret her decision for fear it was going to get out of hand. But her hair grew plenty fast that she wouldn't be stuck with anything for long, so she decided not to speak up. If something new even had a chance of distracting her or making her feel better about herself, Ada was in.

Add the fact that the sandwich board in front was featuring a special on highlights. She figured it was best not to disagree with fate.

Nonni flung her into the salon. Shelves sat in front of the brick wall, filled with products that Ada had never once purchased because they were always so expensive. She'd been frugal with her money for years to save for college, and now she was eyeing them up excitedly.

She'd agreed to live a little on their trip and buy things she'd always talked herself out of. Ada figured that by accepting this, she was celebrating her summer list early by doing what she didn't normally do.

Nonni finished talking with the woman at the front desk and came back toward her and her mom. "Forty minutes," she said with a smile. "So what are we thinking?"

Ada went over to the trendy waiting area filled with two leather chairs and two leather sofas. Only one of the sofas was occupied with a mother about ten years older than herself with her young daughter. She picked up a small pile of books from the table and handed them to her mom before plopping on the other couch.

'Celebrate the list,' she repeated in her brain, determined not to talk herself out of it. "Chin length or longer. The rest is up to you guys," she blurted out before she could change her mind.

Her mother's sparkling eyes and gaped mouth were a mixture of delight and surprise, which already made Ada feel like this was all worth it. "I don't even want to know what you guys pick, but this is a one time only offer, so make it worth it."

Ada moved to a chair so that her mom and Nonni could look through the magazines in private.

She watched them nervously the whole time, watching as one would point to a picture and the other would get all excited. Still, it was nice to see them like this. They got along well enough, but Nonni was still her in-law and they still occasionally struggled to try to please the other.

Once her name was called, she followed the young stylist, happy she got the one with fun bob rather than the one with eighties hair.

"So, what are we thinking here?" she asked as she studied Ada's hair.

Her mom and Nonni took the reins, both of them holding a book. "We were thinking one of these two."

The stylist went over and studied both pictures. "She's got a lot of hair, so I think this one would be better. This one has a lot more dimension and the layers would help give her more control for styling. Are we thinking this length?"

"All of it, including the highlights," her mom said behind her.

The stylist looked at the book again. "I'd go with the highlights from this picture. It would work better with her complexion and her natural hair color.

Nonni grabbed the stylists hand. "We trust you. Do whatever you need to do to wow us."

The stylist wiggled her hand out of Nonni's grasp and went back to Ada. "Well, this is going to take a while, so why doesn't she call you when she's all done?"

They seemed disappointed, but agreed and gave her one last excited look in the mirror before disappearing.

She played with her hair for a while before taking Ada to go wash it. "So this is going to be a big change for you, huh?"

Ada's body tightened and felt the lukewarm water spray against her hair. "I don't know what they picked."

The stylist sensed Ada's nervousness. "Don't worry. It's a great haircut for spring and even if you grow it out a little, it'll still look great longer. Trust me, they did good."

Ada nodded and closed her eyes, allowing the stylist to finish shampooing and conditioning her hair.

When the stylist brought Ada back to the chair, she tried to make small talk but seemed to get the hint with Ada's brief replies. That was her least favorite thing about getting her hair cut and always felt like stylists weren't a big fan of it either. Once the scissors came out, Ada closed her eyes, only opening them occasionally and making it a point to never look in the mirror when she did.

**************

Ada ran her fingers through her new, much shorter hair as she looked through the clothing racks, brushing her new side swept bangs out of her face. She loved her fresh hair cut, despite it being about six inches shorter than she was used to.

Ada had already picked out about twice the amount of clothes she was intending on buying. The new haircut felt her feeling refreshed and somehow more feminine. She wasn't not feminine before, but she wanted the rest of her to match the hair cut now.

She picked out knee length polka dot dresses, a look she hadn't worn since she was a child but was now apparently back in. There were at least three different polka dot dresses in her pile. And pastels. Ada wasn't used to wearing pastels, despite her mother's previous insistence that they'd look great on her. She picked out dark reds too, another color she stayed away from.

Everything that seemed too bold or too attention grabbing seemed to end up in her pile. Even a yellow fringe dress, which she had to talk herself out of putting back on the rack.

She had no idea where she was going to wear all of this, but she wanted it. Ada wanted to feel the confidence that came with clothes and a hair cut like this. She would have become even more daring yet if her mother hadn't reigned her in.

They had no choice but to stop when the trunk to Ada's Prius became full.

It was a better trip than Ada expected. Her mom and Nonni were having a great time with one another, and Ada didn't realize just how much she needed a change. But hell, if people were going to keep staring at her, might as well give them something to look at.

************

It was late afternoon by the time Ada pulled into the driveway. There were a few cars parked in front of the shop from what she could tell, which wasn't uncommon on a Friday. Ada parked next to her grandmother's car and popped the trunk before killing the engine. She grabbed as many bags as she could carry before heading inside.

Peter was sitting at the living room table, doing his homework with the television off. It was a weird enough sight seeing him do his homework without distractions, but add in the fact that the homework wasn't due until Monday, Ada was tempted to check his forehead to see if he was feeling okay.

Her mother and Nonni stopped next to her, appearing to be as flabbergasted by the entire scene as she was. "Hey, kiddo."

Peter didn't look up from his homework. "Hey."

"Need any help?" she offered, unsure of what else she could say. She didn't want to risk him getting self conscious about it.

"I'm good. Tom's been helping me."

The sound of his name just about lit her up like a damn Christmas tree. "Tom?"

Ada turned to see Tom at what seemed to be his place of preference, leaning against the archway of the kitchen, arms crossed and a smile on his face.

She dropped her bags where she stood and ran into his arms, which he uncrossed to accept her. She could hear the air get pushed out of his lungs at the impact, but he didn't complain.

"You cut your hair," he stated above her before he took in a long breath.

Ada laughed and pulled away enough so he could look at it. "Do you like it? It's not too short, is it? My mom and Nonni picked it out."

Tom studied it for a few moments. With Ada having had the same hair cut throughout high school, he'd never seen her out of her norm. "Nah, it suits you. Is it a different color?"

Ada chewed on her bottom lip and nodded. "You sure it's okay? I'm not used to anything this drastic."

"I love it. Promise."

Ada relaxed. She wasn't sure why his opinion mattered that much, but it did. Ada noticed that he was in a white button-up shirt, a look he saved for school. "Did you meet with the school board?"

"They agree with the police that the rumor was unfounded."

"Not that you could tell from that hug," Nonni chimed in from behind her. "Wouldn't be surprised if she ended up pregnant by the end of this conversation."

Tom turned a shade of red she'd never seen on him, a pleasant change of pace considering how many times she'd been embarrassed around him, and he took another step away from her.

"Nonni, be nice," Ada scolded.

"I'm honest before I'm nice, darlin'," Nonni said, waving her off. "Just lettin' you know it's shit like this that adds fuel to the fire."

Ada shook her head at her Nonni before she grabbed Tom's hand and led him back into the kitchen and away from Nonni's bluntness.

"Well, she's special."

Her Nonni didn't behave like that with strangers. You had to be in her life for a while before she began being that blunt. "She'll warm up to you," Ada reassured, having no idea whether it was true. "So that means you're back to school on Monday?"

Tom grabbed his beer from the counter. "So are you. I'm not walking back into the jaws of hell alone."

Ada smiled in his direction before grabbing the lemonade from the fridge and pouring herself a glass. "Is it weird that I have trouble seeing you as a teacher now? I mean, after crying on you and hanging out with you and having you fall asleep at my house, not to mention watching you get stoned with my dad."

Tom chuckled and set his beer back down on the counter. "Yeah, I guess it's been a while since we've had the relationship we're supposed to have. But starting tomorrow, things are going to go back to the way they were. Mostly because it's been ordered by the school board."

A sadness drifted over Ada and she dipped her head to hide it, which was what gave her away. "No more hanging out?"

Tom remained silent as he shook his head.

"What about the coffee shop?"

"I can go, but I have to limit my time there and keep my interactions with you minimal. I told them I was also friends with your dad, so they understood that I'd still be hanging out with him and you'd be around on occasion."

Ada ran her fingers through her hair, confused at first why it took half the time to get to the end. "I guess that's something."

It was only three weeks, which wasn't so bad. Her life would be crazy until graduation anyhow. As much as she hated going to them, there would be parties to distract her a bit and starting back at the coffee shop would help too. Not to mention the newspaper, except she only had one meeting left there.

She didn't like someone dictating who she could or couldn't be friends with, but Ada also didn't want to take anymore chances with Tom's job. She would have to learn how to be his student again rather than friend because for the next three weeks, he was her teacher first and foremost; even if that wasn't how she felt in her heart.

She had no other choice. His career was more important than a friendship. It had to be. He'd already risked enough for her, and she couldn't allow him to do it again.

Ada put on the best smile she could muster, which was shit at the moment. "It's fine. I mean, what's three weeks anyhow? It's nothing."

"And we'll still see each other every day in school," Tom added, following Ada's lead in trying to focus on the positive.

Ada let out a small chuckle. "And we've been friends for what? A week? How difficult could staying away from you be?"

Tom smiled warmly at her. "I honestly forget your name half the time."

"We should just cut ties now," she said before pressing her lips together and giving a slow nod.

Tom shook his head in amusement before walking over to her and extending his hand. "Well, it was nice meeting you..." He squinted.

"Ada," she reminded him before shaking his hand. She tried her best to hold her laughter in, and she was certain her face was going red because of it.

"Ada! That's right." Tom pulled her in and gave her a light hug.

She rested her head on his shoulder and allowed the laugh to escape. "I hate this."

"I do too," he reassured, "but they're just reinforcing rules I was already supposed to be following."

It disappointed that she immediately missed his embrace when Tom let her go.

"Fuck, I'm gonna miss this," Tom admitted with a sigh. "I should get going."

Ada nodded, unable to trust her voice. It would only give away her sadness that she was still in denial about.

He gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head. "I really do like your hair."

The small smile she gave him disappeared as soon as the screen door slammed behind him, and Ada walked over to it to watch him walk toward the shop, where he parked.

The sound of the fridge opening caused Ada to jump, and she turned to see her mom take a pitcher of iced tea out of the fridge.

"You scared me," Ada admitted, putting her hand on her heart and allowing her breathing to steady.

Ada's mom gave a small smile before walking over to the other side of the kitchen to grab a glass from the cupboard, pulling up all of her long brown hair into a ponytail before reaching for one. "That's because you were in the Bennet Trance." Ada gave her a confused look. "I named it seeing as you have one every damn time you're around him."

"I do not!" Ada's cheeks flushed at the thought. Or did she?

"Like I said the other day, you're crazy about him," her mom said with a shrug before walking back over to the ice tea on the counter. She filled the glass and dropped a slice of lemon in before leaning against the counter.

As her mother's finger twitched against the glass, she looked at it sorrowfully before shaking the sadness away. "Ever since I started noticing... the change, I've been thinking about my kids and what I want to see them experience in life while I can still appreciate it. I know I've got plenty of time left before I go downhill, but it's hard not to think about.

"I'm not telling you to act on anything here, because that would just be damn gross and uncool. But this crush you have is the first crazy thing you've let yourself do. You've always been so responsible and so focused on everything that you don't live life. And that's your choice, and I respect that because eventually life shows up anyway."

Ada opened her mouth, but shut it again when her mother held up her hand.

"I think about what I want for you and your brother and your sister and even your father all the time. For you, I want to give you the stars and everything beautiful they have to offer. Because you deserve all the beauty in this world, Ada. You've worked so hard all your life and have closed yourself off from living because you have this fear of being rejected. You march to your own drummer and I love that, but you don't let people close enough to hear the beat.

"The last couple of weeks, you've trusted someone enough to let them hear your song and I think that's pretty incredible. The things I wanted for you are things you are already making happen."

"By letting someone in?" Ada asked.

"That, and just taking chances. Letting others see how great you are. Accepting life's bumps and bruises with grace. Trust more in your heart and don't overthink everything. Don't over analyze and don't let others make decisions for you. That's my list for my baby girl who's been the light of my life now for almost nineteen years."

Ada wiped a tear off her cheek. "That's a good list."

"Yeah," she said with a nod of her head, "it is. And I'm not going to judge what you take out of it or put hidden clauses in it or whatever. I'm not going to tell you to not have a crush on someone, because I can't dictate what your heart does and I don't want to. I'm also not going to tell you to act on your crush because that would be just about the worst parenting advice ever. Sometimes crushes fade out, which I guess is what I'm hoping for here. But the friendship you have with this guy, those are the relationships I want you to have because they are so precious in life."

Ada went over to her mom and hugged her, needing again to wipe off the tears from her cheeks. "You're pretty great."

"Yeah, I am. And damn insightful seeing as I haven't hit the pipe once today."

Ada just shook her head, let out a laugh and squeezed her mother tighter.