The sun streaming in through Lexi's window forced her to turn her head over. She lifted her eyelids slightly and groaned when she saw the witch's robe and Gryffindor tie she wore the previous night strewn across the floor. The articles of clothing confirmed that last night wasn't just a nightmare that happened during sleep. Last night happened. She groaned again and shielded her eyes from the evidence.

Her thoughts forced her empty stomach to stir and she smacked her dry lips together, trying to rid the sour taste in her mouth. Peering over at the door, she saw a couple of notes at the foot of it, likely tucked in by her family the night prior. She got up slowly and made her way over to her bathroom without bothering to look at the notes.

She stripped out of the blouse, shorts, and stockings she was wearing and chided herself for at least not cleaning up a bit before she collapsed onto the bed. While avoiding looking at herself in the mirror, she stepped into the shower and some semblance of relief instantly washed over her. The searing hot water cascaded over her body and she watched as the dirt from her hair and skin circled into the drain below.

Her mind whirled back to Tom and his expression when he found out she was Bex. She thought about their time spent together and all of the evidence that was right under her nose:

1. There was hardly any information available about him online when she looked him up on her first day of class. And what was available now seemed completely fabricated in hindsight. Was he even twenty-nine? Was he even a legitimate professor or was it all a cover for something bigger?

2.  He was right outside the computer labs the night of the party when she got the alert of suspicious activity. This piece of evidence seemed to be one of the biggest flags. Lexi thought about how she wasn't even able to put two and two together.

3.  The way he taught the class. She had thought she knew everything there was to know about Advanced Cyber Security. But Tom's knowledge seemed to exceed far above and beyond what was the call of duty.

4. And finally, as much as she hated to admit that her parents might have been right, Tom was indeed Greg's brother. Greg was a man who cheated on his girlfriend so much that the woman had no other choice but to hire a private investigation firm to catch him in the act. While Lexi didn't believe that people should judge someone based on the actions of those around them, her parents had always said, 'Bad company corrupts good morals'. And this may have been the case with Tom and his family.

Lexi frowned and scrubbed her skin as hard as she could with her blue loofa. She was mentally kicking herself for not digging into it more, for not questioning things more, and for not being more alert to how things were between them.

She knew she couldn't possibly sit with the information any longer and needed to tell her family. But something about speaking it out loud seemed like it would be the final confirmation that she hadn't dreamt it up and Tom was in fact a criminal mastermind. Tom had made her feel things she'd never felt before. She opened herself to him, and now all she had were memories tainted by lies.

My life was fine without him! I don't need him! Yet her chest tightened at the thought. A part of her knew it wasn't true. Even after the big revelation, she knew she still cared about him and wanted what was best for him. How messed up is that?

She let out an exasperated sigh as she stepped out of the shower. After throwing on a t-shirt and sweatpants, she picked up one of the notes left under her door. It was on lined paper and written in her mother's handwriting.

We'll have a big, yummy breakfast ready for you when you wake up! We're proud of you for making the right decision.

Love you,

Mom & Dad

A sad smile appeared on Lexi's face. She wondered what was going through her parents' minds last night when she walked back into the house. Her appearance may have stunned them at the moment, but they were likely itching to know what had happened. She wondered if her resignation counted now that she wasn't with Tom anymore. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if I found another job after all this. I clearly am not cut out for this line of work.

A tear slid down her cheek and Lexi quickly wiped it before reaching for another folded piece of paper on the floor. This one had Cole's recognizable etchings.

Don't listen to Mindy, it's my fault.

-Cole

Lexi turned over the sheet and saw nothing else was written on it. She crumpled it and grabbed the last folded note which she knew would be from Mindy.

I am the worst. Everything is my fault! I'm so sorry I let things slip about Tom and I'm so sorry for not telling you about Cole. I broke things off with him and quit, so you guys won't ever have to see me again. What I did was worse than what Jordyn Woods did to Kylie Jenner. I love you Lex, and I'm so sorry again.

-Mindy

Lexi's eyes grew wide as she read over Mindy's note. As much as Mindy's actions yesterday hurt her deeply, Mindy was still a part of her family. There was no way Lexi was going to let Mindy leave them for good. She couldn't have two people she loved just dropped out of her life in a matter of a day. She threw on some shoes and sped out the door. While she had been wanting to tell her parents about Tom, she reasoned she needed to tackle one thing at a time.

"Hey, Mom and Dad," Lexi said as she reached the kitchen. Stacks of pancakes were set on the counter and Scarlett was hovering over the stove stirring scrambled eggs. The heavenly aroma made her stomach grumble.

"Lexi?" Jason and Scarlett both shot their heads up with their eyebrows raised. "How are you-"

"Sorry, can't stay and chat, I need to talk to Mindy," Lexi said while grabbing two pancakes and placing them on a paper towel. "Thanks for breakfast, gotta run." Just the small amount of eye contact she made with her dad made her heart want to burst. She knew if she stayed any longer she wouldn't be able to hold in news about the case.

"Oh, okay, we just-"

Before Lexi could hear her dad's response she was out the door and on the way to Mindy's apartment. She ate the pancakes as if they were pieces of bread on her drive over, feeling more sense of relief as the food filled her empty stomach. Okay, Lex, you are strong! You can do this! God, please help me move forward from all of this!

Lexi made her way to the intercom and rang up to Mindy's studio apartment. "Hi, you can just leave it on my doorstep," Mindy's voice filtered through the receiver.

Before Lexi could respond, a buzzing sound came out of the call box and the apartment entrance unlocked. Lexi bounded up to Mindy's apartment and after a few knocks, the door opened a crack. "I said to just leave it-" Mindy froze when her eyes landed on Lexi. "Lex?" she asked while opening the door further. She was in sweats and a t-shirt, her hair was pulled up into a messy bun, and her eyes were bloodshot. Lexi could tell she'd spent the night crying and it made her heart hurt for her best friend.

Lexi pushed the door open further to give Mindy a big hug. "Mindy, don't leave me." Tears began streaming down Lexi's face. Mindy returned the hug and started crying as well. The girls stayed there for a moment as they both tried to get words out but instead made loud, incoherent sounds through sobs.

An unfamiliar voice at the door made them jump and turn to the sound's origin. "Um, Uber Eats order for Mindy?" A young teenager's eyes were wide as he held up a small brown grocery bag.

"Oh, thanks. That's my ice cream," Mindy said while wiping her eyes with the back of her hands. She grabbed the bag and closed the door behind her.

Lexi sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she made her way to the couch. There were so many things they needed to air out and Lexi briefly wondered where to start.

After grabbing some spoons from the kitchen, Mindy followed and they both settled on the couch. "It was a 'chocolate ice cream for breakfast' kind of day." Mindy smiled feebly and handed Lexi a spoon.

Lexi smiled for a moment but it quickly faded. "Mindy, I'm not going to lie. What you did hurt me a lot."

"I know, Lex. I'm so sorry. I have such a big mouth and need to control it."

Lexi shook her head. "Not about accidentally telling my family about Tom. At first, I was shocked and it did suck that it happened, but they were bound to find out at some point. I'm hurt that you didn't tell me about you and Cole dating. I would've gotten over it, but it felt like you didn't even give me a chance to react or consider what I was feeling."

"I'm so sorry, Lex. I was so scared. I really, really like Cole. Ever since the party he changed and started being nicer to me. And then we just sort of kept talking and it snowballed from there. I never meant to hurt you, and I liked him so much that a part of me didn't want it to end. I realize now how selfish I was being. I should've just told you from the beginning."

"Did something happen between you two at the party?"

Mindy sighed. "Honestly, I was so drunk I barely remember anything that happened. After talking to Charlotte about her tattoo it was all kind of a blur. But Cole did say we hooke-."

"La, la, la, la!" Lexi interrupted and covered her ears while Mindy curled her lips in, catching herself. "Okay, forget I asked. I don't want to know any of those details." Lexi sighed with a soft smile and scooped up some ice cream. The chocolatey goodness melted on her tongue and she savored every drop. Talking things out with Mindy while eating chocolate ice cream was much needed after the night she'd had. "Mindy, I don't want you to break up with Cole. As much as I find it super weird, the thought of you being my sister-in-law someday is kind of fun. But you have to promise me, you'll never keep a secret this big from me! Like seriously, pinkie promise!"

"I promise!" Mindy quickly responded while lifting her pinkie. The girls interlocked fingers as they'd done countless times in the past. This type of promise somehow felt more binding than a blood oath.

"And you have to promise me that if things don't work out with Cole, you'll still be my best friend."

"I promise. You're my bestie for life. I don't want any guy to ever get in the way of that. And I'm so sorry that it did!"

"Thanks, Mind." Lexi sighed and looked down. "I'm sorry too."

"What? You seriously don't have anything to be sorry for!"

Lexi shook her head. "No, I do. I was so caught up with things with Tom and the case I realized I haven't been a very good friend to you. I should've picked up on things between you and Cole. I should've listened more. Instead, I just talked about myself."

Mindy squeezed Lexi's hand. "There's nothing to forgive, Lex. I love hearing about everything going on with you and you've been such a great friend. You honestly have nothing to be sorry about."

The girls sniffled and Lexi quickly inhaled. "Okay, enough crying!" She wiped her tears dramatically which forced a laugh out of Mindy. "We're grown women who make mistakes. As you always say, let's not let anything shake us!"

"That's right!" Mindy scooped another spoonful of ice cream.

"Especially men who are hackers disguised as professors..."

Mindy nearly spat out the ice cream she had just put in her mouth.

***

Lexi had never seen Mindy's eyes as wide as when she recounted everything that happened. For a moment, Lexi paused thinking a fly would zoom into Mindy's mouth for how long it had been dropped open. At one point Mindy jumped up from the couch and began pacing the room.

"Oh, my God. There is so much to unpack here! I feel sick thinking about it." Mindy dug her fingers into her hair and scratched her scalp. "Like what the hell? I'm so angry at him!" She flung her hands in the air and continued pacing.

"I know, me too." Lexi brought her legs up to her chest and rested her chin on her knees. A part of her still couldn't believe it was true. The Tom she got to know would never do something like that. But then again, people lied, stole, and cheated. And in her line of work, she out of anyone should've known that.

"Well, I guess you've solved the case though. That's the plus side in all this."

Lexi shook her head. "But I need the evidence. I don't think the police would arrest someone for threatening messages. We'll need to somehow get into his code."

"What did your parents say when you told them?" Mindy stopped pacing and turned to Lexi who raised her brows and tucked her lips in. "Oh my God, you didn't tell them!"

"I was going to but when I saw your note, I ran straight here!"

"Aww, Lex! Okay, so should we go back and tell them?"

Lexi shifted her mouth to the side. While it did seem like a good idea to tell them, a part of her still wanted to confirm for herself. To see with her own eyes if Tom was truly a criminal mastermind. Also, a part of her wondered if she could prove that she had what it took to do fieldwork. If she was able to get everything sorted, then perhaps her family would take her more seriously as an adult. "I-um, I was thinking maybe you and I can try to get some evidence...tonight."

An amused expression appeared on Mindy's face. "Lexi Scott! Please don't tell me what I think you're telling me!"

"What do you say we go on a mission tonight and take a trip to Tom's house?"

Mindy's smile grew and Lexi instantly knew her best friend was on board.

***

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