Brice and I sat at the edge of his bed, putting our clothes back on. When my shirt was on, I paused. "Brice?" He looked my way as he buttoned his jeans. "Are we awful people for finishing after Jax walked in on us?"

        A crease formed in his forehead. "Why would we be awful people? Why should we stop what we're doing just because he barged in?" He shook his head in disapproval. "The nerve of Velasco. Doesn't he know how to knock? What the hell was he doing upstairs, anyway?"

        The look he gave me. I couldn't forget it, and the guilt intensified. I stood up, and Brice made his way over to me. He wrapped his arms around me.

        "We didn't do anything wrong," he said. "Lots of boyfriends and girlfriends do what we're doing. He shouldn't be that shocked."

        He grabbed my hand, and we made it out of the room. I didn't want to face Jax. At the same time, I wanted to make sure he was okay. When I spotted him in the kitchen, I made my way over, and Brice followed.

        "Jax, I—" I stopped. There was vodka on the counter with an empty shot glass. "Are you drinking?"

        He sent me a blank look. "Wow, you're a smart one."

        I didn't miss the sarcasm from his tone. "Excuse me?"

        "Velasco," Brice said, "what the hell was that? Barging into rooms?"

        "I was looking for the bathroom." He chuckled. "Why am I explaining myself to you?" He leaned against the counter. "Why don't you guys leave me the hell alone, so you can continue fucking?"

        "I don't think you're a very good drunk," Brice pointed out.

        Jax glared at him. "I don't give a damn what you think, Brice."

        He turned around for another shot. "Okay, that's enough."

        I reached for the bottle, but he snatched it away. "Leave me the fuck alone."

        The venom in his voice took me aback. "Okay, chill, Velasco," Brice intervened. "I don't know what your problem is, but don't take it out on Estella."

        Jax got into his face. "What are you going to do about it, huh?"

        Brice pushed him back, but Jax only came closer. "Velasco, back off."

        "What are you going to do, Brice?" he repeated.

        "Jax, enough," I said, and his attention moved to me. "What's gotten into you?"

        He scoffed. "Stop playing dumb." His expression was cold. "It's not a good look on you."

        Brice shoved him aggressively, and Jax grabbed the counter. "You need to cool it. Right now."

        I grabbed Brice's arm. "Brice, let's go."

        "Good riddance," Jax said as I led Brice away.

        "The hell." Brice ran a hand down his head as we walked off. "I'm never going to be on his case again for not drinking."

        That wasn't Jax. Jax wasn't cold. In the beginning, I thought he was obnoxious, but he was never like this. I couldn't even recognize him. His father was a drunk, and now, he was drinking. I knew things were rough at home, but I didn't know it was this bad. It had to be for Jax to drink.

        I noticed Sabrina by herself in the corner while Mi Yun talked to Sadaf, so I knew it was my opportunity. "I'll be back. I have to talk to Sabrina."

        "Why?"

        "I have to talk to her." I kissed him, short and sweet. "I'll be back."

        He nodded, and I made my way over to the blonde. When I stopped beside her, I leaned against the wall. "What do you want?" she asked, and we turned to each other.

        "What are your intentions with Mi Yun?"

        She smirked. "What's up with you? What do you have against me?"

        "This is not about whether or not I like you," I told her. "This is about my friend. What's your deal? You break up with her. Then you guys are friends again. Now, you're grinding on Jax and kissing him?"

        "Jealous?"

        My face stiffened. "This is about Mi Yun."

        "Sure." Sabrina looked forward. "We're having fun. Whether that's as girlfriends or as friends."

        "This isn't a game," I said. "Mi Yun isn't here for your convenience. She has feelings."

        "Never said she didn't."

        "Then why are you messing with her?" I asked. "Mi Yun is crazy about you, and you're taking advantage of that."

        Sabrina frowned. "I care about Mi Yun, which is exactly why we shouldn't be together."

        "Stop making decisions for her," I said. "If she wants to be with you, she wants to be with you. Stop trying to act like some martyr."

        She scoffed. "Trust me. I'm not. I have a lot of baggage. Baggage Mi Yun doesn't need to deal with."

        "Stop with all this angst," I said. "Stop acting like some tortured soul. We all have baggage."

        Her eyes became slits. "What issues do you have? Not getting the highest seat in band class?" She moved closer to me. "Not getting to be with the two boys you like at the same time?" My eyes went round. "Yeah, I know." Mi Yun told her. "The last person who should be talking to me about baggage is you. I'll love to have your 'problems.'"

        "You're going to regret this later," I said, "treating Mi Yun like this. In the future, you're going to look back and realize that Mimi was the one that got away, and you're going to hate yourself for it. You're the reason you're so miserable." Her expression relaxed. "You make your problems worse by sabotaging yourself. That isn't on anyone but you."

        "I like Mi Yun," she said. "It's not fake."

        "Then act like it."

        "Hey." Brice approached us. "So, you guys are talking?"

        "We're done here," Sabrina said.

        Brice grabbed Sabrina's arm before she could walk away. "I just wanted to say..." Brice paused. "I'm sorry. For the way I treated you. It was messed up." She nodded. "It wasn't my finest moment, and this apology is long overdue."

        She jerked her arm from his grip. "It's okay. You did me a favor, anyway. You ended a doomed relationship, making us not waste each other's time any longer. I will say I'll talk to you later, but probably not." She smiled. "Thanks for the apology, anyway."

        She was gone, and Brice turned to me. "Okay," he said with an arm wrapped around my shoulders. "That was interesting."

        Sabrina Fraser was weird.

        "I'm going to go talk to Jax," I said.

        "Again?"

        "Something is wrong."

        "Obviously." Brice and I faced each other. "You don't have to fix him, Estella. That's not your responsibility."

        "I know," I said. "I'm not trying to fix anyone. I'm just trying to be there for him. He needs someone."

        "He has plenty of people around," Brice said. "He's the one shutting us out. He's the one making himself so lonely."

        "You don't get it."

        "I don't," he agreed. "I don't get the guy."

        Jax was like Sabrina. He sabotaged himself.

        "I'm going to give it another go," I said.

        "Up to you," he said. "I'm gonna go talk to Oliver."

        I nodded, and he cupped my cheek and kissed me. My arms wrapped around his neck as he deepened the kiss, holding me tightly. I didn't know how long we stood in each other's arms, kissing, but it was longer than before as his tongue found mine.

        "Get a room," Mi Yun said as she passed us, but we kept kissing, anyway.

        When we finally parted, Brice smiled. "What was that about?" I asked.

        We pulled away from each other. "You can talk to Velasco all you want," he said, "but at the end of the day, you're mine."

        I snickered. "What's next? You're going to pee on me to mark your territory?"

        He smirked. "Kinky."

        I smacked his arm with a chuckle. "I can't even with you." I caressed his cheek. "I'll be back."

        I turned around and walked to Jax. He was still in the kitchen. "Are you going to hide out here for the rest of the night?"

        "Maybe." His speech was slurred. "Why aren't you with Brice?"

        "Jax, stop," I said. "Stop acting like I'm doing something wrong."

        He stared at me for a couple seconds. "So, you're having sex with him now?"

        "Not the way you think."

        "But you are together in some way."

        "He's my boyfriend," I said. "Stop acting like it's so out of the ordinary. It's not like we started having sex in front of you. You barged in."

        "But you rub it in my face," he said with his nostrils flared. "You kiss him. You grind on him. You act all lovey-dovey. You do it all in my face."

        "That's not fair."

        "Don't talk to me about fair," he said. "I have no right to feel this way, but I can't help it." His voice was getting louder. "I'm pissed, and I don't know how to stop being pissed."

        "Jax." I looked around. "Keep it down."

        "I won't keep it down," he said, almost shouting, and the others started to look our way. "This is why I don't do this shit." He moved for the living room, and I followed him. "I hate people because all they do is hurt you."

        He had the others attention by now. "Velasco," Brice said, stepping forward. "You good, man?"

        "No," Jax said. "I'm not good. It's just disappointment after disappointment, and it's so predictable. But it doesn't make it hurt any less."

        "Jax." Oliver stood beside Brice. "Calm down. It'll be okay, man."

        "It's not okay!" Jax shouted. "I've accepted it from my family. The pain. My father. My mother. Even my brothers." It was silent, with the only sound coming from Jax. "But it's not any better outside my family. All you guys think about are your fancy houses and cars. Your parties. You can't even fathom a life in south Creek, but that's my reality."

        "You live in south Creek?" Brice asked.

        "It doesn't matter," Jax said. "I'll never be like any of you. My father was right. You're all pijos. I don't belong here."

        I grabbed his arm before he could turn around for the door. "Jax, no."

        He focused on me. "First, Sabrina. Now, you."

        "Don't compare me to Sabrina."

        "Wow," Sabrina said. "Thanks."

        "What does Estella have to do with Sabrina?" Brice asked.

        Jax chuckled. "You're such an idiot. You don't see it."

        "Jax, shut up," Oliver said. "You're drunk. You don't know what you're saying."

        "I do," he said. "For the first time, it's all coming out, and I feel free."

        Brice took a step forward. "What does Estella have to do with Sabrina?"

        "You just love to go for the girls that I had first, don't you?"

        "Jax!" I scolded, and Brice glanced my way.

        I could feel Brice's stare."What is he talking about?"

        "I dated Sabrina freshman year," Jax said. "You start dating her next. Then I become friends with Estella."

        "Jax, stop. Please," I pleaded.

        "You start flirting with her," he went on. He peeked over at me. "Estella and I admit we like each other, and we kiss." Brice's eyes bugged out as Jax turned his attention to him. "You start dating her right after."

        "Jax, that's enough!" I hollered. "What is wrong with you?"

        "You!" he yelled. "You enter my life, and everything just changes. You give me this false hope, and then you just take it away."

        "You like each other?" Brice glanced between me and Jax. "Estella, tell me this is a joke."

        "You make it sound like I'm breaking your heart, Jax," I said.

        "You are," he said. "But it's my fault for giving you the opportunity to."

        "Estella." Brice turned me to face him. "Tell me this isn't true." I buried my face into my hands, but he made me look at him. "Look me in the eye and tell me you don't like Velasco."

        "Brice."

        "Tell me," he said. "Look me in the eye." I did, and I opened my mouth, but I couldn't do it. I couldn't lie, not even for his sake. Brice's jaw tightened. "You like Velasco."

        I grabbed his face in my hands. "I like you."

        He pulled away from me. "You also like him."

        Oliver sighed. "Fuck. And it blows up."

        Brice peeked over to him. "You knew about this?"

        Oliver's eyes widened. "What? I—"

        "You knew about this," Brice said, and Oliver clamped his mouth shut. "Wow." He chuckled as he glanced between the three of us. "You two like each other," he said while motioning between me and Jax. He pointed a thumb at Oliver. "And your ass knew."

        "Brice..." Oliver trailed off.

        "Stop acting surprised," Jax said. "You've either known for a while now and been in terrible denial, or you're just gullible."

        Brice's hands balled into fists. "Watch it."

        "C'mon, man," Oliver said to Jax. "Stop adding fuel to the fire."

        "You have everything," Jax said to Brice. "But you still have to take from me."

        This wasn't Jax.

        "This whole time you've been wanting Estella," Brice said. "What? Have you been waiting for us to break up?"

        "It was going to happen sooner or later," he said.

        "You son of a—"

        Brice didn't finish before punching Jax in the jaw. "Brice," I shrieked as Jax fell back. Brice got on top of him and sent another blow. Then another. "Brice, stop!"

        Oliver hurled Brice off Jax, and Tyler came forward to hold him back. I ran over to kneel beside Jax, and I helped him sit up. I lightly touched his face, and he winced.

        "It's true," Brice said, and we locked eyes. "You've liked Velasco this whole time. I'm so stupid."

        "No, you're not." I stood up to approach him, and he freed himself from Tyler and Oliver's grasp. "Brice, listen to me."

        "Get him out of here," Brice said to no one in particular. "Get the hell out, Velasco."

        Jax stayed on the floor. "He's drunk," I told Brice.

        "I don't care," Brice said. "He needs to go." Brice grabbed my arm before I could go to Jax. "Stay."

        "I'll drive him home," Oliver said.

        "No," Brice jumped in. "He leaves alone."

        "Brice," Oliver said in disbelief. "He's drunk."

        "I don't give a damn," Brice said.

        "He can't drive," I reminded him. "This is dangerous."

        "Why is he still in my house?"

        "I'm driving him home." I didn't care what Brice said. I wasn't allowing Jax to drive home drunk.

        "Leave, and we're done," Brice said, and I halted in my steps. "If you leave with him, I'll know you're choosing him." We held eye contact. "Stay with me."

        "I'll drive him," Oliver repeated.

        "Again, no," Brice said. "What is it, Estella?"

        "Brice, please."

        "What is it?"

        It was quiet, no one knowing what to say as Brice and I focused on each other. I didn't want to lose him. I liked Jax, but I also cared about Brice. We couldn't end like this. Then I peeked back at Jax, on the floor, drunk and in pain. I couldn't let him drive home. This was about safety, and I could never let Jax get hurt when I could stop it.

        My gaze shifted to Brice, and I knew. I liked Brice, but it was Jax. I could never turn my back on him.

        "I'm sorry, Brice." With that, I moved over to help Jax up to his feet. "Let's go, Jax."

        Brice released a sharp breath as Mi Yun came to help me pull Jax up. He leaned on the both of us. "Sabrina, let's go," Mi Yun said, and Sabrina came forward, along with Sadaf.

        One look at Brice, and I saw the defeated look on his face. "We're done," he said, and I held back my tears. "We're done, Estella."

        "Let's get out of here," Sadaf said, and we turned to leave.

        I caught one last glimpse of Brice, and he threw his solo cup to the side. "We're fucking done."

        I rushed out of the house, appreciating the cool, night air, finally feeling like I could breathe. We stopped on the driveway in a mini circle. "Maybe we can all fit into my car, so I can drop everyone off," Mi Yun said.

        "No," I said. "We're not leaving Jax's car here. I don't want Brice to lose it and destroy Verda."

        "Aw, how sweet," Sabrina said. "You care about him and his car."

        I ignored her. "I'll drive him home."

        "Okay," Mi Yun said. "Then I'll follow you. You can tuck him in, and then I'll drop everyone home."

        "Sounds like a plan," I said as Mi Yun and I walked to Verda.

        "Want me to ride with you guys, Es?" Sadaf asked. "I can keep an eye on Jax while you focus on driving."

        "That'll be perfect," I said. "Get in first because he needs to stay near the window." Sadaf got into the car to sit in the middle, and we helped Jax get in. "You okay, Jax?" He didn't say anything, reaching the point of sluggishness. I closed the door before turning to Mi Yun. "Stay close behind me, okay?"

        She nodded. "Sabrina knows his house, anyway."

        "Okay." We got into our respective cars. "You got this, Es?" Sadaf asked. "You don't have your license and neither do I."

        "We're gonna find out."

        With that, we began the drive to Jax's house. Mi Yun stayed close by while I opened the windows to give Jax some fresh air. "Estella," he mumbled.

        "It's okay, Jax," I reassured him. "You'll be okay."

        When we reached Jax's house, we all got out of the cars, with Jax leaning on me and Sadaf. "You made it," Mi Yun said, impressed. "Okay, you two take him in, and then we'll head out."

        "We're going to wake up his parents," Sadaf pointed out.

        His mom was gone, and I hoped his father wasn't around. "I don't care," I said. "I just want to get him into bed."

        So, Sadaf and I made it to the house, and I took Jax's key to open the front door. The house was engulfed in darkness, except for the TV. Jax's father was passed out on the couch with a bottle of whiskey on the table in front of him. Sadaf and I quietly helped Jax into his room, and we helped him sit on his bed.

        I turned to Sadaf. "Can you get him a glass of water?"

        She nodded and went downstairs. Jax removed his shirt and his jeans, being in only his boxers. I stood in front of him. "I'm gonna go, okay?"

        "Don't." He wrapped his arms around my middle, resting his head on my abdomen.

        "Jax."

        He held me tighter. "Don't go."

        Sadaf returned with the water, and I put it on the dresser. "I can't stay."

        He wouldn't release me. "Don't worry about my dad. He has work early in the morning. He'll be gone before we wake up, and he's not going to check up on me."

        I looked to Sadaf for help. "Stay," she said. "Just tell your dad you're spending the night at Mimi's place. I'll head out and tell her the plan."

        "Stay," Jax said.

        I thought about it, but when he lifted his head up to look at me, I was done for. "Okay."

        He grinned, resting his head on me again. "Okay, I'm going to head out," Sadaf said. "Take it easy, Es."

        "Thank you."

        "Feel better, Jax." Sadaf walked out, and not long after, the front door closed.

I removed myself from Jax's hold to go downstairs and lock the door. Then I returned upstairs to see Jax lying in bed. "You can borrow one of my shirts to wear."

        I went through his things to get a shirt, and I changed in the bathroom. Right when I put the shirt on, Jax ran into the bathroom and emptied out his stomach. I rubbed his back as he kept throwing up. "You drank too much."

        I grabbed a bucket, knowing this would happen some more, and I took him to the room. He drank some water, and we got in bed. I texted Daddy that I was spending the night with Mi Yun, and he didn't question it.

        "I'm sorry," Jax said. "I fucked up."

        I couldn't say anything, and we didn't sleep much that night. He kept throwing up into the bucket, and all I could do was rub his back to let him know that I was there.

When the breakup happened, I was numb. As time passed, it started to hit me, and in the middle of the night, I couldn't hold the tears back anymore. I cried as silently as possible, so Jax wouldn't hear. I cried for Jax. I cried for Brice, and I cried for our relationship.

        There went the boy of my dreams.

        I thought this, but I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else. Jax needed me, and I could never walk away from him.

        Not even for Brice.