09/12/2015

chapter six ;
CONFESSION

♡

THE NEWS SPREAD quickly after my fight with Nickie – whoever she was. The next morning, upon my wake, I was met by eight pairs of eyes. The house, contrary to my expectations, was not empty – aside from Luke.

　The boys had managed to squeeze themselves into the sofas and chairs in the living room. To my surprise, the television's screen was black. They all stared at me, stars in their eyes – DeNunez was the only boy not present.

　"The class that I don't have with you, and I miss out on all the fun," Bertram finally spoke, the moment my feet hit the floor.

　"Not that big of a deal," I shrugged, casually making my way into the kitchen, as if the boys' sudden and unexpected appearances didn't faze me.

　"Not that big of a deal?" Ham shrieked. "I don't even go to the high school, and I've seen the videos. Kayla – "

　"Okay, okay, I get it," I waved Ham off. In truth, the cockiness had worn off. All that mattered at the moment was breakfast.

　The boys followed behind my heels as I gathered a bowl, spoon, and a box of Cookie Crisp. Each of the boys made their own remarks, in which I found hard to keep up with. My attention was focused on the cereal I poured.

　" – I mean, look at your eye!" Squints was saying, pointing to me. "It looks bad, but I bet it's nothing compared to Skylar's sister!"

　My entire body froze; no one else seemed bothered. Slowly, I turned to face Squints.

　"Skylar's sister?" I drawled, brows furrowed in disbelief and confusion.

　"Yeah, Nicole Roberts," Squints confirmed. "You didn't know?"

　"I didn't even know Skylar had a sister," I replied, my frown deepening with each passing moment. "So you're telling me . . . I beat the shit out of my brother's girlfriend's sister."

　"Correct," Squints said. "They have different dads, though. I don't think they live together, but still."

　"Oh, my God," I grumbled. "She's going to hate me forever."

　Benny, who had finally made his way to throw an arm over my shoulders, said, "Who cares? She's not exactly someone you'd want to be friends with anyway."

　"Yeah, she's kind of crazy," Bertram added. "The way she's always fighting with Luke, then making out with him the next second kind of creeps me out."

　Benny nodded in agreement. "Yeah. And then she gets mad for whatever reason – I have no idea."

　Skylar's opinion should not have mattered to me; I just feared that she would start something, dragging my brother into it. In truth, I believed that he deserved better – much better. And Skylar had turned into something of a psycho.

　"It's just gonna cause drama," I sighed, returning to the bowl of cereal I poured. As I closed the box, Tommy approached me with the jug of milk. "Thanks, Tommy."

　The boys followed me back into the living room, in which I munched on my cereal. The split in my lip made anything involving my mouth painful, but my hunger overruled.

　"So . . ." I said after swallowing a mouthful of Cookie Crisp, "are you guys here just to talk about the fight?"

　"Pretty much," Timmy confirmed.

　Eyebrow raised, I asked, "How'd you all manage to decide the exact same thing at the same time?"

　"A group chat," Smalls piped up. "DeNunez said he couldn't make it, but he saw the fight, so it doesn't really matter."

　My mouth dropped – stretching the cut on my lip painfully, so I closed it; instead, I sent them all looks of mock hurt. "A group chat? And I'm not included? Wow, guys . . . I'm hurt."

　"Don't worry, Kayla," Tommy said, making his way to sit by my side. "I'm not in it either. I just came with Timmy."

　Timmy rolled his eyes. "Because you don't have a Facebook, Tommy."

　Eyes remaining on me, Tommy said, "Mom says I'm too young."

　I couldn't help but to laugh – but it was instantly followed by a gasp of pain.

　"Jesus, this cut is really getting on my nerves," I grumbled, touching the cut with a gentle finger. A spark of anger made me want to hit the cut, as if it had a mind of its own and was intentionally bringing me pain.

　"I can try to kiss it better," Benny suggested.

　"No!" Yeah-Yeah shouted. "You guys are always kissing."

　All of the boys agreed – even Benny. I rolled my eyes, smirking, and stood up. "Anyone want the rest of this cereal?"

　"Me!" Bertram immediately shouted, scrambling to reach me before anyone else could.

　"Oh, my God, Bertram, calm down," I giggled, holding out the bowl for him. "You act like you go starving."

　"I could be," Bertram replied, taking the bowl, "you never know."

　"Okay, I'm gonna go change," I informed the boys. "Be back in a minute."

　The only boy who didn't remain seated in the living room was Benny. Rather, he followed me upstairs.

　"You trying to watch me change?" I chuckled.

　"If you let me," Benny replied in a serious tone. As we reached the door to my bedroom, I whirled on him, only to find him smirking. "Joking, babe."

　Benny pressed a soft kiss to my lips. Rolling my eyes, I smiled.

　"You can come in," I said. "I'll change in the bathroom." As the two of us entered the bedroom, I asked, "Does Lynn have any adventures planned for us?"

　"Not this weekend," Benny replied. "I think she's got the flu or something. But she wants to go to church with us in the morning."

　A smile grew on my lips as I rummaged through my closet. "Great." Pulling a black muscle tank from a hanger, I asked, "Could you get me those Nike sweatpants? The gray ones?"

　"Sure."

　Moments later, just as I turned to face Benny, I got a pair of sweatpants to the face. A gasp of surprise escaped my lips, and then I laughed.

　"You little punk," I giggled. "Thank you. Be out in a second."

　"Okay. . . ."

　With that, I made my way into the bathroom connected to my bedroom. Quickly, I peeled out of the clothes I slept in, replacing them for the clothes I picked out for myself.

　Before exiting the bathroom, I brushed my teeth. Next, I brushed through my hair, only to put it into a bun after because of the frizz. Finally, I applied deodorant and perfume.

　Upon entering my bedroom, I found Benny sitting on my bed, staring at a piece of paper; a red envelope rested on his lap. His eyebrows were knitted together tightly – I couldn't tell if he was angry or extremely focused.

　I caught myself before I could ask what he had. A horrible nausea washed over me. Had I received another threatening letter? And if I had . . . how did it appear in my bedroom? I hadn't noticed it before, but it definitely wasn't there the previous night. . . .

　"Makayla . . ." Benny spoke slowly, "is there someone out to get you? Like, really out to get you?"

　"Um . . ."

　"You haven't seen this letter, have you? Someone's threatening you. And there's no name on the envelope."

　"No, I didn't see it – "

　"Well, what the fuck?" Benny stood to his feet. "We have to go to the police. This is a serious threat . . ."

　I snatched the letter from Benny's hand. In thick, red handwriting, the letter read:

Soon. You'll regret everything really soon. I'll kill everyone you love.

　A giant lump formed in the back of my throat, impossible to swallow, and a wave of nausea washed over me. My pounding heart seemed to drop to the soles of my feet. Suddenly, my brain shut down – I couldn't quite process the words on the page, and I couldn't form any words of my own.

　"Kayla, are you okay?" Benny touched my shoulder. "You're as white as a ghost . . . Look, don't worry, I'm not – Hey, listen to me."

　To earn my attention, Benny took the letter, threw it to the ground, and stood in front of me. He placed a large hand on my uninjured cheek, and the other hand curled around my neck. He forced me to look into his hazel eyes, which studied my face, as if searching for some sort of answer.

　"I'm not gonna let anything happen to you," Benny promised.

　"I'm not worried about myself, Benny," I whispered. "This person said they would kill everyone I love. Not me. And that's even worse. . . ."

　Benny sighed. "It might not even be serious. Someone might be trying to play some stupid joke – "

　"They're not, Benny," I insisted, an aching in my chest – why hadn't I told him earlier?

　"How do you know?" Benny finally let his hands fall from my skin, but his eyes never left mine. "How can you be sure?"

　"Because I've been getting these letters since the day before school started," I confessed, staring down at my bare feet. "And if this person is telling the truth, which I don't see why they would lie about this . . . they started the treehouse fire."

　Benny was silent for longer than I was comfortable with. Eventually, I glanced upward. His eyes still hadn't left me; the look on his face showed a perfect picture of utter shock.

　Finally, Benny backed away from me a few steps. "You're telling me . . . that you've been threatened multiple times . . . and you haven't told me?"

　"I'm sorry, Benny, but I didn't think anyone would really want to know," I rushed to explain myself. "I mean, there's the possibility that it might just be some stupid joke – and if it is, I'd hate to make a huge deal out of it for nothing. And I didn't want anybody to have any unnecessary worries."

　"Anybody?" Benny looked horrified. "You mean you haven't told anyone?"

　Unable to form a proper reply, I simply nodded. The blood rushed to my cheeks. In that moment, I felt as though I were a child being scolded by my parents over something extremely wrong. There was nothing I could say, because I knew that I had been the wrong one.

　Tears burned the back of my eyes; my emotions had been running wild. But Benny wrapped me into a tight embrace a moment later; my cheek pressed against his warm chest, and the smell of his cologne pervaded my senses, and suddenly, I felt calm.

　"I'm sorry that you had to carry that alone," Benny mumbled. "I'm sorry if I ever somehow made you feel like you couldn't trust me with stuff like that. But I'm always gonna be by your side – I don't care if there's a chance that the letters could be a joke. I'll protect you, even if you don't need to be protected."

　The two of us held each other for what felt like an eternity. Eventually, a knock sounded at my door. Benny and I pulled apart, our gazes instantly finding each other.

　"Should we tell them?" I whispered.

　Benny shook his head. "We've got it handled. Better if they don't know."

　However, the boys were still in the living room. I was instead greeted by my brother, whose hair stuck out in odd places, partly matted to the side of his face. Luke's eyes were a grayish color, halfway open.

　"I heard voices," Luke said, voice husky with sleep. "You okay?"

　"Oh, yeah, I was just . . ." I trailed off.

　Luke's eyes rose, and he nodded in Benny's direction. "Well, if you're all right, I'm going back to bed."

　"Luke, it's almost twelve o'clock," I pointed out.

　"Since when are you an early bird?" A smirk grew on Luke's shiny lips. "My God, Hell has frozen over."

　"Shut up," I chuckled. "It's not even that early. School got me on a schedule. Hey, did you know that the girl I fought is Skylar's sister?"

　"Um . . . Wait, what was the question?" Luke's eyes seemed a bit unfocused, accompanied by small bags underneath.

　I rolled my eyes. "Never mind. Just go back to bed."

♡

　Later that day, since Lynn was sick in bed and Elizabeth was out looking for a job, Benny and I volunteered to cook dinner. For Lynn, we made a potato soup – it was all she could keep down. The main dish was potato skins for everyone else, in attempt to break even as much as possible with the small meal Lynn was forced to eat.

　As the meal neared completion, I decided to start on the dessert – my current craving: chocolate chip cookies. Lynn could nibble on them; I prayed that she could keep it in her stomach.

　Music played from Benny's phone, which was connected to a speaker. He mainly listened to rock 'n' roll. But after a while, a more familiar song played – Hunger by Ross Copperman.

　Needless to say, I dropped the task at hand, which was rolling the cookie dough into balls. I turned to face the boy I was fortunate enough to call my own; Benny stared down at the plates he was setting out, a smile playing on his lips.

　"You remember this song?" I asked, hardly able to hold back a smile. The memories flooded to me – the day I had confessed my feelings for Benny by singing that song.

　"How could I not?" Benny averted his gaze to me, a sparkle in his eye. "Sing."

　"Turn it up all the way, and I will," I chuckled, returning to rolling cookie dough balls.

　The music's volume elevated ever so slightly, and Benny made his way behind me. He pressed his lips to my bare shoulder.

　"Sing."

　"This is so cheesy," I smiled. But I turned to face Benny, wiping my hands on my pants, and grabbed his hands.

　As I sang, Benny and I danced around in a silly manner. Grins stuck to our faces – mine hurt, but I dealt with the pain.

　Just as the song ended, the front door opened. Luke entered the house, mouth parted.

　"I'm not late, am I?"

　"Nope," I answered, pulling away from Benny, a smile permanently set on my face.

　Benny and I went back to our previous tasks as if nothing had happened.

　Within the next hour, everyone sat at the table – even Lynn; she insisted upon spending time with her family. Elizabeth had finally seemed happy. Luke stole a million glances her way, it seemed. Benny rested his hand on my thigh or held my hand throughout the entire time.

　Even without my parents, I felt at home. The amount of time I knew the Rodriguez family was short, but I felt as comfortable around them as I did with my own brother and parents. My heart swelled with love; I loved them all with every part of me.

　Night approached quickly, and the dinner soon ceased. After Lynn had gone to rest, Luke and I decided to get milkshakes from Steak 'n Shake; Benny and Elizabeth, upon Luke's request, agreed to join us.

　Needless to say, Luke drove, and Elizabeth sat passenger. Benny and I sat in the back, hand-in-hand. As the older teenagers spoke, ignored music playing softly, Benny suggested,

　"You should tell him tonight."

　"I'm going to," I replied. "I just don't want to tell my parents. They'll definitely freak out."

　"You have to, Kayla," Benny said, his voice gentle, "just in case it's serious. I think they deserve to know if their daughter is being threatened."

　"I know," I sighed. "I just don't really know how to say it."

　"I'll stay with you while you do, if you want."

　"I do. Thank you."

　Light poured from the windows of Steak 'n Shake. The restaurant, as well as the bustling streets, seemed quite busy. Luke opened the door, and even from behind Elizabeth, I felt the rush of cool air, caught the scent of the delicious food.

　A waitress greeted us, and Luke requested a table for four. Soon, we all took our seats at a booth. Luke and I sat beside each other; Benny sat directly across from me, Elizabeth across from Luke.

　I scanned the milkshake menu, and the moment my eyes fell upon the Nutella Milkshake, I nearly passed out.

　"Oh, my God!" I whisper-shrieked. "They have a Nutella one."

　"You didn't know that?" Elizabeth chuckled.

　"No! I've been to Steak 'n Shake once, and I didn't even go in. I didn't even get a milkshake. All I got was a hamburger."

　"Jesus, Makayla," Elizabeth gasped. "You haven't lived!"

　Laughing, I nodded in agreement. "I know."

　My eyes, on instinct, flickered to Benny. His attention was elsewhere; he stared in the distance, behind Luke. Needless to say, I turned to follow his gaze. A few moments went by until I finally found what he was staring at . . .

　Skylar.

　Skylar's blonde hair was pulled into a tight bun, and from the side of her face, I noticed that her face was almost caked with makeup. Her lips were ruby red, and her eyelids were dark, complimented by fake eyelashes. And she wore a little black dress that ended mid-thigh and hugged her body with a tight grip.

　The blonde had taken no notice of me or her boyfriend. Rather, she laughed loudly with a couple that sat across from her. Had she been sitting beside the only guy at the table, I would have made assumptions.

　My gaze returned to Benny, and I found that he was staring at me, brows furrowed slightly. His eyes flickered briefly to Luke. His silent question was clear: Should we tell him?

　Of course we tell him, was my silent reply. I glanced over at Luke, but he and Elizabeth had been carrying on a conversation – they hadn't noticed mine and Benny's discovery. Before I settled on an attitude, I returned my gaze to Skylar. Somehow, I wasn't surprised when another guy showed up, sitting down beside her; Skylar greeted him with a flirty smile and a hand to his chest. He had dirty-blond hair and a muscular build – I noticed him at once.

　"Luke." The name left my mouth in a sharp, hurried tone – I hadn't even thought before speaking.

　My brother trailed off, leaving behind his conversation to look at me. "What?"

　"Your girlfriend is here," I informed him, "and she's sitting with the dude from the fair – the one who kissed me, and the one she calls her best friend."

　Luke turned leisurely, following the direction of my finger. Elizabeth, as well, searched out the girl. In seconds, everyone at our table stared at Skylar, who had just rested her head upon the guy's shoulder, laughing.

　Just then, the waitress returned. In a light voice, the redheaded girl asked, "Are you all ready to order, or do you need a minute?"

　Everyone looked to Luke, but he didn't move. His jaws were clenched tightly, and his muscles were tense. So, Elizabeth answered for the both of them.

　"He and I want the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough milkshakes."

　"I want the Nutella milkshake," I spoke up after the waitress had written down the first items in the order.

　"And I'd like the M 'n M milkshake, please," Benny said.

　"All right," the waitress said, returning her gaze to us. "Will that be all?"

　"Yes, ma'am," Benny spoke, nodding at the girl.

　We all handed the waitress our menus. After assuring us that our milkshakes would arrive soon, the waitress swept a long strand of straight, red hair behind her ear and left us.

　All was silent for a while. But I could only imagine myself bouncing Skylar's face off of the table.

　"So . . . should we wait until we get our milkshakes until I beat her ass or . . . ?" Elizabeth questioned.

　The faintest of smirks curled at the edge of my lips. "But I wanted to beat her ass."

　Elizabeth grinned. "You got her sister. It's only right that I get her."

　"No fighting, you guys," Benny said. "She's not worth the trouble."

　Luke had not seemed to be paying attention. All of a sudden, he got to his feet, a swift and violent move. On instinct, I jumped to my feet as well. Luke froze, as if ready to push me away, but my intentions were not to stop him.

　"Please, guys – " Benny began, but Luke and I had already gone. Elizabeth was by our side in seconds.

　The only other female at Skylar's table was the first to spot us. The smile vanished from her face the moment her eyes landed on Luke, and she froze up. Before anyone else took notice, Luke had grabbed the dirty-blond guy by the shirt.

　Rather than punching the guy, to my surprise, Luke growled, "Outside." The venom dripped from the single word, enough that even I began to feel scared.

　"Luke, it's not – " Skylar began.

　"Shut the fuck up, Skylar," Elizabeth growled.

　Skylar's mouth snapped shut. She stared at Elizabeth, a mix between surprise and rage in her eyes. I could tell that she was contemplating whether to say something or not – but she resided on the latter.

　That's what I thought, I laughed internally.

　The dirty-blond stood up, devoid of fear. He jerked Luke's hand off of his shirt. "Do we have a problem?"

　"What do you think?" Luke stood his ground, equally fearless. "You're with my girlfriend, are you not?"

　"Luke – "

　Elizabeth simply cast Skylar a death glare, and her mouth shut again.

　The dirty-blond snickered. "Skylar? Get over it, man – she doesn't want you anymore."

　Luke shook his head, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. "That wasn't the case four hours ago when she . . . Well, you can use your imagination."

　Genuine confusion crossed the dirty-blond's face. He turned to look at Skylar, who had gone completely red. "Today?" Turning back to Luke, he said, "She told me that she dumped you a week ago."

　My mouth dropped open; at that moment, Benny appeared by my side and took my hand – which was a good thing, because I was one second away from lunging at Skylar. I didn't care that my knuckles were almost black with bruises and cuts.

　"No," Luke said, "we haven't broken up at all." His anger was now focused on Skylar rather than the guy standing before him. "But we are now. Skylar – go fuck yourself." Backing away, Luke nodded at the dirty-blond. "She's all yours."

　With that, Luke whirled around and walked for the exit. Elizabeth and I stared at each other for a moment – we were both thinking of dragging Skylar outside, I was absolutely sure. But my worry for Luke overruled; my face softened, and Elizabeth, whose lips were pursed, nodded.

　The dirty-blond took one look at Skylar, shook his head, and walked away. The two who sat across from her sat in silence, avoiding everyone's eyes. And Skylar stared at me and Elizabeth, face red and eyes glossy.

　"Puta," Elizabeth spat before turning on her heels.

　Skylar glared at me. Before following Elizabeth, I growled, "Bitch."

　"Come on," Benny mumbled, "let's go."

　Elizabeth had already gone to find Luke, so I stopped at the table. Fortunately, I had thought to bring a bit of money of my own.

　Less than a minute had passed, and the redheaded waitress returned with our drinks. The milkshakes were in tall, cute glasses.

　"I'm sorry," I said, "but can we get some to-go cups?"

L U K E
point of view.

　A burst of warmth attacked me the moment I stepped outside. My fists were clenched so tightly, my nails pierced the skin of my palms – but I couldn't tell. The agonizing pain in my heart could not be distracted.

　I inhaled deeply and exhaled, the breath escaping with a tremble. My chest ached, and my throat tightened. And I couldn't stand the pain, so I converted it to anger.

　Sense escaped me, and I lunged at the wall, slamming my clenched fist into the rough brick. The impact sent a sharp pain all the way to my elbow; my hand went numb, but I could feel it throb, feel a warm liquid running down my hands and dripping from my fingertips. Yet I punched the wall again.

　Tears blurred my vision, and it took everything for me not to yell out. But I sucked it up, and I approached my car.

　Before I reached the Mustang, a voice called out my name – no one I had been expecting, though. Josh, the guy who was with Skylar, left the double doors of Steak 'n Shake and neared me.

　Although Josh had been played by Skylar as well as I had, I wanted to knock his teeth out. I hadn't forgotten the times that I had caught him with Skylar before, in which he had known we were together – unless Skylar had told him otherwise, which she very well could have.

　Josh reached me at my car, which I leaned against. He stared at my hand for a while, but said nothing. Instead, he brought out a red box, opened it, and held it out to me. I was against cigarettes, but I needed something, anything, to help me calm down.

　So I pulled a stick out of the box and put it between my lips. Josh pulled out a lighter and, as I sucked in, lit the end of the cigarette. The thick smoke entered my lungs, and I allowed it to stay there for as long as I could hold my breath.

　"I'm sorry, man," Josh finally said, lighting the cigarette in his mouth. "I really didn't know . . . I was under the impression that you two were on and off a lot."

　I shook my head, glaring at the ground. "We haven't had a breakup until today."

　"This is the first time ever?" Josh asked. When I nodded, he chuckled. "Wow. . . . She lied to me too. If I would have known that you were with her the entire time, I wouldn't have been with her."

　The emotional pain crept back into my system, and I took another deep drag. There was only silence on my end, except for the faint sound of the tobacco burning as I inhaled.

　"I've been in love with her since we were kids, man," Josh continued, his voice much quieter now. "She would always invite me to play Barbies with her. And when we were in middle school, she would hold my hand at the pep rallies. She would never give me a real chance, though . . . She just flirted with me, made me feel like she felt something for me. And now . . . I wonder if she ever did. . . . I'm still in love with her."

　"Me too."

　In the near distance, I heard the double doors opening and closing. I glanced upward, only to find Elizabeth walking toward me. But not even she could make me feel anything other than pain at this point.

　"I really am," I mumbled.

　Josh inhaled sharply, then blew out gray smoke. Staring past me, he said, "I know how it feels. How could you not fall in love with Skylar? She's just perfect. But who we thought she was, that isn't her. And I think she's always been that way.

　"Now, Elizabeth," Josh mumbled, more to himself, "she's the real deal. I did her wrong. She didn't deserve that. Girls like her . . . they're the ones you look for to spend forever with."

　I continued to stare at the ground numbly as Josh walked away. Only a few moments later, Elizabeth's white Converse invaded my view of the black concrete.

　"Are you okay?" Elizabeth's voice was soft, soothing – and it only made me want to cry more. "Luke – your hand."

　"I'm fine," I grumbled, avoiding her gaze. "I just wanna be left alone right now."

　For a while, Elizabeth was silent – but she didn't leave, and I couldn't tell her to. In all honesty, I knew deep in my heart that I wanted her to stay with me. Even if I wasn't willing to admit it aloud, or even in thought, my uncontrolled subconscious knew that Elizabeth was one of the only people who could make me feel better.

　So, when Elizabeth leaned against my car beside me and wrapped an arm around my waist, I didn't object, not at all. She rested her head on my shoulder, and sighed lightly.

　"That girl has problems," Elizabeth began. "She had a perfectly good guy, someone who could have given her every single thing she could ever want – but maybe she didn't want what you could give. Maybe she didn't realize just how special you are. And she doesn't deserve you."

　No words found me, but I was grateful. There was a small spark somewhere inside me, in the darkest part of my heart. Where there was pain, Elizabeth was there to fight it. She always was. And while perhaps Skylar didn't deserve me . . . I didn't deserve Elizabeth. Because she was comforting me, bringing me a sense of happiness and hope – and Skylar still pervaded my mind.

　Despite our constant fighting, I did love Skylar. At first, she had seemed so pure, so sweet. Admittedly, she did turn out to have another side, but it was just that – another side. The sweet part of her was real. Most of the time we were alone, she treated me like gold, and she hadn't a mean thing to say.

　But my love had been cheating on me. More than once, and only God knew the extent. I didn't want to know. At this point, I believed in the saying, "Ignorance is bliss."

　Elizabeth sat in silence with me, her arm still wrapped around my waist, and I puffed on the remains of my cigarette. The smoke had provided a small sort of high – a dizzy sensation that, quite frankly, I hated. But it was something that provided a distraction.

　As I allowed myself to think more clearly, though, I realized that the real distraction was Elizabeth. Not the ever growing pain in my hand, not the disgusting chemicals in my lungs, but Elizabeth Fiona Rodriguez.

♡

　"Thank you for . . . you know," I mumbled, hardly able to face the girl in front of me.

　"Yeah," Elizabeth replied, "you're welcome. It's what I'm here for. . . . You know I'm here for you."

　"Yeah, I do," I sighed, running my fingers through my hair. "So . . . I'll see you around."

　"Not if I see you first."

　For the first time since my breakup with Skylar, I cracked a smile. My eyes finally met Elizabeth's. "Where did you get that?"

　Elizabeth grinned. "Your sister isn't the only one with great taste in movies."

　The smile remained on my lips. I kissed Elizabeth on the cheek before leaving her at her door to cross the street to my own house. All I wanted to do was sleep. First, though, I would probably have to tend to my hand – by the constant sharp pain, I was sure I had broken it.

　The night only got worse when Makayla decided to inform me of the death threats she had been receiving.

♡

This chapter took me so long to write, so I hope you guys like it. The next chapter will sort of be a direct continuation, but for the following day.

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!! It's finally 2017!!!! I can't believe it. My crush Snapchatted me saying that, and I got so happy. He thought of me 😂

Stay gold.

January 1, 2017