"Hold up," I said, raising my hand and placing it in front of my camera. "She did what?"

Lowering my hand again, I got a good look at Harvey's light hair. For some reason, he had his phone up higher than his face. His hair looked windswept.

"Hey Lindsey," I called out when I saw the hot girl poster on his wall. She stood on a plank of wood with a tool belt around her waist. Skimpy clothes decorated her body. "What do you think of our pal here?" Of course she didn't answer me. She couldn't. But I pretended that she did. "Oh, he's asleep? That's what I thought. Maybe I can tell you a secret, Lindsey. Come closer." I brought my phone closer to my face. "Harvey Beckinsdale is in love with you."

His chuckles filled my ears. He appeared back in my camera with a smile on his face. I noticed a scratch on his neck, and I choked on my spit. "She did that?" I tapped my screen where his neck was. "Is this girl crazy or what?"

"There's more on my arms," he replied, nodding. "She literally threw herself at me and attacked me."

"Did she want the magnificent Harvey Beckinsdale?" I asked, sounding exactly like most girls at our high school. "No one has had him, so she wanted to be the first."

He rolled his eyes. "That was her reasoning. I just can't believe she did it in public."

"She did that where?" I asked, my eyes widening.

"We were out to eat at Hotcakes."

"You really took her there?" I asked in a deadpan tone. "That's the most romantic place you could think of?"

"I think we're talking about the girl who launched herself over the table, not the guy who got attacked."

"She launched herself over the table?" I asked incredulously. This story just kept getting crazier and crazier. 

"She said I looked hot tonight," he continued. "That's why she didn't stop kissing me until I threw her on the ground."

"You did what?"

"Cat, you sound like a wind-up toy." I glared at him, pursing my lips. "Yes, I threw her on the ground. But that's because she literally wrapped her legs around me. She wouldn't let go of me!"

"Dude, you don't just throw a girl."

"Dude, you haven't been attacked by a rabid guy."

I snorted. "Does Fred count?"

"Don't you mean Count Fred?" he asked, causing me to burst out laughing. 

"Yes! Him!" I nodded enthusiastically. "He bit my neck a little too hard and drew blood."

"Okay, he does count." His laugh accompanied a smile on his face. "At least you were in your room. I was -"

"I had to explain to my mother why my neck was bleeding," I countered. "I was fifteen. She didn't even know he was here."

He wouldn't stop laughing. I wished I could hit him, but he was on my screen, not here in person. 

"Harvey," I growled. "It wasn't that funny."

He wiped his eyes, still laughing. "I beg to differ."

"Beg."

He set his phone on what I assumed was his bookshelf and literally got on his knees. Clasping his hands together, he said, "I promise that it was as funny as it sounds."

I rolled my eyes. "Get up. I'm not God."

"With that body like a goddess, I beg to differ."

For some reason, my cheeks heated up. I knew guys referred to me like that, but I didn't think he ever would. And I didn't think I would like it as much as I did.

"You really used that phrase twice in a five minute period," I said, my voice thick. 

"Yes, I did." He stood up and grabbed his phone. Holding it close to his chest, he clambered back onto his bed. "I am refined, Cat."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

My heart still raced at the thought of him calling me a goddess. I couldn't get it out of my head. It was like a wildfire, burning across my mind to my body. 

I jumped when a door slammed in my house. All thoughts of Harvey left my mind as I realized my brother finally came home from his own date.

"What was that?" Harvey asked.

"Beckett came home."

"Oh! Didn't he go on a date tonight, too?"

"Yeah. I'm gonna go check on him. Be right back."

I set my phone on the shelf above my bed and hopped off of it. My feet thudded against the floor as I raced to my brother's room. Grinning, I burst through his door.

"How was your date?" I asked excitedly. He looked up from his phone, a despairing look on his face. My smile dropped off my face as quick as it came. "What happened? I don't need to break out my bat, do I?"

He didn't smile at all. Instead, he flopped onto his bed. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Was it that bad?"

"Horrific."

I rested my hand on his back. "It'll get better."

"That's not helpful."

"Why?"

"You have so many failed relationships. I don't think I should listen to you."

I gasped in surprise. "Thanks for that, man. I was trying to make you feel better."

"Nothing will make me feel better."

"Well, I'll leave you to your pity party."

"Thank you."

I exited his room, shaking my head. He was only fourteen so this shouldn't even count. Him and his date couldn't even pick each other up. They had to have my mom drive them around. 

"Did he tell you what happened?" Mom asked as she stepped onto the landing from the top of the stairs. I shook my head. "He tried to kiss her, and she told him that the only reason she went out with him was for help on her math homework."

I snorted. "Girls can be witches." She gave me a look. "Hey, at least I said that. I'm not adding any more money to the curse jar. That drained me faster than shopping at the mall."

"I got a lot of money from that." She ran a hand through her dark hair. "I feel bad for him, though. He really liked this girl."

"Me too."

She rested her hand on my shoulder before drawing me into a hug. "I'm going to bed, sweetheart."

I raised my eyebrows. "It's only seven."

"My shift at the hospital was rough," she explained, pulling away from me. "I lost a boy around the age of Beckett." She swallowed hard, and her face flushed red. "It hit hard."

"I understand," I said quickly. "Completely. Dad just left for his shift, so I'll make some dinner for me and Beckett."

"He already ate."

"I'll make dinner for me."

"If you have time, could you bring me something?"

"Of course."

I bolted into my room and grabbed my phone. "Where have you been?" Harvey asked, annoyance creeping into his voice.

"Consoling my brother." I slipped out of my room and started down the stairs. "His date ended almost as bad as yours did."

"Really? Did she attack him?"

"No. She said the only reason she went out with him was to get help on her math homework."

"Ooh," he said. "I felt that, and I'm not even there."

"Yeah. He's in his room right now."

My kitchen was dark and quiet as I stepped into it. "Where'd you go?" Harvey asked, squinting. I flipped the light switch on, and the chandelier reflected on our white tile floor. "I found you."

"Funny." I opened the refrigerator, shivering as the cool air hit my bare skin. Nothing really looked appetizing in there. I slammed it shut and said, "What should I make for dinner?"

"You haven't eaten yet?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Wasn't hungry."

"You would never eat with that excuse. What were you really doing?"

I rolled my eyes. "Math was really fun tonight."

"I can't believe I actually heard that coming out of your mouth."

Opening one of our many cabinets, the yellow box of mac and cheese stood out to me. I grabbed it and said, "You should know by now that I'm a sucker for math."

I set my phone on the island before rummaging through another cabinet. Most of our measuring cups were in the sink, but one still sat alone in the cabinet. Grabbing it, I turned around and lifted a pot off of the rack above our island. 

"What're you making?"

"Mac and cheese."

"I think I need to teach you some new recipes. You literally eat that all the time."

"It's my comfort food." More like, it's really easy to make. But I didn't mention that to Harvey.

I filled the measuring cup with water and poured it into the pot. Dumping the contents of the box into it, I turned the dial on the stove. I sat down at the island and grabbed my phone. Harvey wasn't looking at me, so I said, "My mac and cheese is on the stove."

"I'm fine," he said, his voice a little muffled. I realized he was talking to someone else, so I stayed quiet. As he chatted to whoever was talking to him, I saw the red bar on my phone, signalling that it was about to die.

"Be right back," I muttered.

I left my phone sitting right next to the pot on the stove because the plug in was on the wall behind the coffee maker. And the coffee maker sat right next to the stove. 

Climbing up the stairs, I made sure to be quiet. Mom most likely was already asleep, and Beckett was probably playing video games as he tried to pick up the pieces of his heart. An idea slowly formed in my head when I grabbed my charger. 

Hurrying down the stairs, the grin couldn't stay off my face. This was such a great idea, and I couldn't wait to share it with Harvey. I stepped into the kitchen to hear him yelling about something. I was too excited to even notice what he said. Instead, I plugged my charger into the wall and shoved the other end into my phone.

"Harvey!" I said excitedly.

"Do you not even notice your mac and cheese boiling over?" he yelled, pointing at me.

"What?"

"Look to your left!"

I did as he asked, and my jaw hit the ground. Water ran over the sides of the pot, and the mac and cheese mix spilled onto the floor. I threw the pot over a different burner to let it cool down. I noticed that the knob was pointing at high. Swiveling it around to off, I sighed and leaned against the counter, my head hanging over my phone.

"I can't believe I did that again."

"Aren't you going to clean it up?"

"I'm pretty sure it's hot right now."

He shook his head, and I knew he was trying to hide his smile. "What were you trying to tell me while your food was literally spilling everywhere?"

I nodded, brightening up a bit. "You and me are apart of Beckett's protection agency."

"We are what now?"

"We are agents for Beckett's protection agency!" I said again, louder this time. "We're going to protect him from heartbreak."

"And how are we going to do that?"

"Take him out sometime to that go-kart place near your house. Then we're going to set him up on a blind date."

He raised his eyebrows. "With who?"

I tapped my chin for a few seconds before the greatest idea hit me. "Didn't Sophia's younger sister recently break up with her boyfriend?"

"How should I know?"

"She's your friend?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, but she doesn't really talk about that to me."

"What does she talk about?"

"How much she hates school. Stuff like that."

"You two don't talk about anything else? Literally anything? That sounds so superficial."

"She's not as close to me as you are."

My stomach growled, and I groaned. "I'm hungry, but I don't want to make anything else."

"Don't you have anything else in your fridge?"

"Yes."

"Eat something from there."

"I don't want to."

"Are you going to whine to me the rest of the night?"

"Maybe."

"Bye."

I grabbed my phone and held it close to my face. "Wait! Harvey!"

"What?" he asked.

"Bye!" I sang before hitting the end button. 

His eyes widened before he disappeared. Instead of going right to bed, I focused on cleaning up my mess.