"Why did you get a car with only two seats?" Harry asked Embry.

"Because that's how I like it," she retorted while focusing on her mobile phone.

"It's a classy car, red and Ferrari," Quinn smiled at her boyfriend.

"It's not bad, only that it can't accommodate all your girls," Harry stated, holding Quinn's hand on the cafeteria table.

"Yes, it's a sport, Harry. Anyway, Lilith's van can accommodate all of us. Isn't that right, hun?" Embry tilted her head towards Lilith with fake innocent eyes. How can she be so cruel?

A van, seriously?

Forcing a fake smile, Lilith nodded to her conniving friend. "Of course."

I honestly don't understand why Lilith and Embry are friends. And why Lilith would want her brother to get along with someone like Embry.

"Ava, so what's up with you and Arlen? That dude doesn't post girls like that on his Instagram," Quinn leaned forward.

Trust me, I've heard that.

"And that scarf? Omg, it's so cute," Suri added, excitement spreading over her face.

"Yes," I smiled uncomfortably. I didn't know what else to say when all eyes were on me.

The way Embry observed me made me uneasy, so I tried to grab a bite of my food just as she uttered, "Did you sleep with him afterwards?"

Once again, I choked on my food in the cafeteria. So much for Embry's kind of apology. As I struggled to catch my breath, I heard Lilith say, "What's your problem?"

"What did I do? I'm just being a good friend," Embry defended herself in a deceitfully innocent voice.

Suri handed me a bottle of water that I gulped down, almost finishing half of it. "Take it easy, don't drink too much," Arlen Garrett's voice popped up in my head.

I turned to find him standing behind me and smiled at him. "Awn, aren't you two adorable? Why don't you ask her to the homecoming dance?" Embry grinned. Well, actually, I don't believe her, so I won't say grin. Because I'm sure behind that smile is a horrible plot.

Arlen blushed and ignored Embry. He greeted the girls, "Why isn't Leigh here?" Embry asked him straightforwardly, and now we know who's looking for a homecoming date.

"He's at practice. The team needs to warm up for Saturday," Arlen explained. "I'm also heading to the field," he concluded.

"Cool," Embry responded sadly, and I almost smiled at her disappointed expression. Luckily, the news of her Ferrari has overshadowed the events of last week. I think that's the aim of the car anyway—to help maintain her reputation on the road.

"See you later," Arlen said to everyone but smiled at me in particular.

"He's into you. He better ask you to the homecoming," Quinn whispered as he walked away.

I don't know how I feel about going to the dance with Arlen Garrett, actually. I haven't decided yet. And why does everyone think Arlen asked me to the dance? Well, he did ask me to the game, does that count?

"So into you," Suri laughed, clarifying it further. While Lilith knowingly smiled at me, and I believed she was still waiting for an explanation that I owed her.

Unable to stop blushing, I just focused on not throwing up as I finished the remainder of my lunch.

School closed promptly at three o'clock, and students scattered after jotting down their human geography assignments. The hallways were packed with students nominating themselves for homecoming king and queen, and I walked alongside Evie, engrossed in our conversation about our funny PE class, when I spotted Leigh by his car with his back turned to me.

The sight of him instantly soured my mood, and I began to frown. He's so infuriatingly handsome even without trying. Both hands in his pockets, he shifted his position just enough for me to notice he wasn't alone. He stood face to face with Sofia Halt in her hot girl mini skirt, and she gently patted his cheek while he gave her his warmest smile.

Cool, now it's Sofia Halt.

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I tried not to let my heart ache over Leigh's game. What did I expect, though? Just because Leigh acted all nice to me last night, did I think everything would be fine? That Leigh would give up his promiscuous life and devote himself to me? He's good at lying anyway, so I'm not surprised by his two-faced behavior.

But why does it hurt?

"You're coming to my house, right?" Evie asked joyfully, interrupting my thoughts.

Shit. I even forgot. I promised to see Evie's new books today. "Yes, yes," I forced a smile. I think it satisfied her because she didn't seem concerned about it, and if she did, she wasn't persisting in knowing why.

Although we can't just switch emotions when we desire, so I ended up frowning the whole time as we walked towards Evie's house alongside the road.

I was so annoyed at what I had just witnessed that I barely paid attention to what Evie was saying until a loud horn startled both Evie and me. "Oh jeez," Evie let out a heavy sigh.

Exhaling, I turned around to see the familiar blue Chiron winding down its window. "Jump in," Leigh lowered his sunglasses to the bridge of his nose as he spoke.

Shaking my head, I folded my arms across my chest as I informed him, "No, I'm heading to Evie's."

"Your mom is expecting you right away," he raised his eyebrows in a way that I knew was just a setup. He's undoubtedly good at it. "I mean, you don't mind letting her attend to her mother's emergency call," he innocently said, addressing Evie, who blushed at his words.

Irritated by his behavior, I turned away and began to walk. "Ava, you should go see your mom. We can do it next time," concerned, Evie said to me. Or at least he's charmed her with his spell, for she seems unable to stop blushing.

Fighting the anger I felt right now, I smiled and bid farewell to Evie before joining Leigh in his luxurious car. "I thought we were back to riding home together," he said as I closed the door.

"I'm not in the mood to ride back with you," I coldly responded.

"Why?" Confusion was evident in his tone.

"You know, plotting against my plans is very low, Leigh," I faced him with dilated eyes.

All the blood drained from his face, and he looked away from me. "You can't just go telling on me or asking your dad to take us on a family tour because you don't want me hanging out with my friends," I stated firmly.

"So, you and Arlen are what now? Best friends?" He turned his gaze back to me when I didn't respond, and he continued, "And just so you know, I didn't rat you out; I simply gave your mother an honest answer to her question. Yes, I suggested the idea of spending the weekend together. So what? You seemed to enjoy it, and it was for the sake of my father and your mum."

"You're lying," I scoffed at his excuse.

"You're overreacting. Did Arlen mess with your head or something?"

"What?" I quickly reacted to his accusation.

"You know what I mean, showering you with Hermès products and taking you to expensive restaurants, just so he can show off a naive British girl for attention. And you, being naive, actually believe him. Oh, and you followed him back." The intensity of his fierce glare forced me to look away and swallow. I knew exactly what this was about. He was angry that I didn't follow him back, but I followed Arlen. He was angry about the rumours circulating at school regarding Arlen and me. He was angry about anything related to Arlen and our friendship.

"He's a friend, Leigh," I said slowly.

"I thought we were starting over." His agitated expression shifted to disappointment as he tried to capture my gaze.

"That's why you're hanging out with Sofia instead of Embry, right? Fine." I directed my anger at Leigh, who seemed completely lost.

"What?" he questioned.

"I saw you in the car park," I raised my eyebrows. "So don't act like you weren't."

"She was wishing me good luck for Saturday," he sighed and explained calmly.

Scoffing, I rolled my eyes at the ridiculous excuse. "I knew it. Why do you have to lie, Leigh? Good luck? Seriously? She was all over you, running her hand all over your face. Is that how girls wish you luck?" I crossed my arms, expecting a genuine explanation.

He swallowed and took a few seconds to stare through the windscreen before he sighed and looked me in the eyes. "How can I explain to you how much you mean to me and make you understand how I feel about you, Ava?"

"I don't care, Leigh. You're two-faced. The last time you kissed me back, you went out with Embry. So why should I believe you now?" I shot back at him. I didn't care. I had just confessed to kissing him the other day. I didn't care that he was staring at me as if I had grown two heads. Right now, I was just so mad at him. Every time things started to get better between us, he messed it up within hours.

Leaning forward, his optimistic, luminous eyes widened as he said, "Say yes, and I'll prove it to you."

"It doesn't work that way, Leigh," I told him.

"It's simple. It's either yes or no, Ava." Leigh's voice was thick with anticipation, and I began to fear that I didn't have an answer for him.

"I don't have an answer for you," I honestly said slowly.

He snorted and leaned back. "You're stalling. Why?" He shook his head, waiting for me to open up to him.

"I don't have an answer for you, Leigh," I repeated.

"Ava, it's a simple yes or no. Don't be a coward." His voice grew irritated.

"I'm not being a coward," I snapped angrily. Great! It seemed like discussing our issues in this car had become a habit.

"Then tell me how you feel about me." His voice grew louder in the confined space.

"You're going to be my brother, Leigh," I reminded him.

"Stepbrother," he firmly corrected.

"It doesn't matter. We can't," I said.

His eyes glistened as he leaned forward again, shaking his head. "Everything matters, Ava. Everything does matter." His gaze anxiously held mine.

I was tired of this back-and-forth conversation with Leigh all the time. "Please, let's just forget about it. You have girls who admire you. It's enough." I didn't know why it hurt saying it out loud. Actually, I think my words hurt me more than they hurt Leigh.

He leaned in even further, and before I could process what he was doing, his lips were moving against mine. He tasted just like the other night, but this time I wasn't intoxicated. It was different because I knew I wouldn't be able to forget any of these moments anymore. It was different because I felt shaky; my whole body shivered as I did nothing but freeze in the unexpected situation I found myself in. I didn't know what to do. Should I push Leigh away? Should I go along with him? Should I get out of the car? Honestly, I couldn't do anything because my stomach was overcome with a flurry of butterflies, and every bone in my body felt weak, leaving me numb. I couldn't breathe; there wasn't enough air. All I had was Leigh. He was tightly connected to me, invading every part of me.

Leigh pulled away, leaving his forehead against mine. His vibrant green eyes locked with my rapidly blinking ones as he whispered, "I desperately want you, don't you understand?" Now his voice was gentle and pleading.

What had I gotten myself into?