NEVER BEFORE HAD ELLA seen a room get quiet so quickly. Everyone except Mia and Will seemed to notice the tenseness, though Will got cued in by Alex' frown. Ella had to give it to him, at least Levi was brave. As if hearing her thoughts he was the first to take a sip, before looking right at her.

"You have balls, Peterson," Ella chuckled, following his lead.

Once she took the sip he smiled, one which let the monarch butterflies in her stomach melt into honey. He always looked so quietly warm when happy, a calming feeling which was such a sharp contrast against her ex. Whenever Samuel had smiled it had been full of excitement and fireworks, Levi was just moonlight and silent water kissed by dawn. She wanted to dive right in it, until she drowned in that spring heaven in his eyes.

"Fuck it," Sebastian murmured," if my baby sister can do it, why can't I?" He raised his glass then, before downing it.

"You like someone here, Sebastian?" Faiza said, looking puzzled. "You met them all to - Oh."

The realization settled quickly, her eyes widening as she stared at him. When she didn't immediately say anything, Sebastian shrugged.

"I may not be able to recite any fancy writers," he said," but I'm willing to listen to you talk about them forever, until they too have spun their way in my mind."

"Where was my romantic speech, Levi?" Ella said as she looked at him, voice serious but smile betraying her.

Levi just frowned. "I just gave you a love declaration."

Their conversation had been quiet, but only when they stopped talking did Ella realize everyone else had too. Faiza was still staring at Sebastian, expression undecipherable. Whatever courage her brother had found earlier it seemed to have dissipated along with the last rays of the sun, stress slowly beginning to seep in his posture.

"Faiza?" he asked, hesitating," what is it?"

"I don't know Sebastian," she said softly," you know I love you, but you have a different girl each week. How am I supposed to take this?"

"That doesn't mean anything, Faiza," he said desperately," not like you, never like you. I was just too scared to ever try, so I decided to try to forget about it." He ran a hand through his hair, tousling it. "I can't though. You're still the person I dream about at the end of the day."

Faiza looked troubled, the emotion foreign on her usually so calm face. Only then did she realize everyone was looking at her, the realization seeming to shake her out of her thoughts as she took his hand in hers.

"Let's talk about it somewhere private," she said," this is no place for conversations like this."

Sebastian nodded, immediately jumping to his feet. Faiza followed more graceful, her long dress sweeping the floor and fluttering behind her like wings of tule. She offered them all an apologetic smile, before taking her leave, Sebastian following.

"So," Alex began awkwardly, scraping his throat," time for the next question?"

"Did everyone drink?" Elisabeth said.

Ava glanced at Alex, shaking her head. "Yeah, shouldn't you? We all know you're prone to like anyone if they're female."

"Don't start with me again, Ava," Alex said, voice rising in volume," we both know we were on a break when I kissed that girl. And you can't say anything when you got with that fucker Trevor right after."

"What break?" Ava said," we had a fight again and you decided to kiss another girl in the same club I was at."

"Oh, don't change the story!" Alex said, eyes burning," you screamed at me that we were done forever again, am I supposed to just cry at home until you take me back each time?"

"Don't make this my fault," Ava said coolly," I explode, sure, but so do you. In the end you make the choice to come back, so don't pretend you're some pitiful fool snared in my trap."

"If only I was," Alex scoffed," now all it seems I am is an idiot slowly getting poisoned by whatever toxicity this is."

"Then leave," Ava said," why do you keep coming back? Why do you keep holding on?"

"Why do you?" Alex said.

Ava didn't reply at that, instead standing up and smoothing the wrinkles out of her skirt. She shook her head, a weariness tugging at her.

"I don't know anymore," she said.

"So you're going to leave again?" Alex said, getting to his feet as well," you always do that when it gets tough and it gets us nowhere."

"We are already going nowhere!" Ava shouted, finally losing her cool," this relationship is burning and we're choking, can't you see?" She threw her hands in the air, looking genuinely frustrated. It was the most emotion Ella had seen from the girl until now. "Hell, why do you think I even got with Trevor? It was because I knew you hated him that I said yes when he asked me, that damned image of you and that girl in the club seared in my mind."

"But what does it matter?" Alex said," in the end it'll always be you and I, no matter who comes in between. You promised me that, remember?"

"A lot has changed since then," Ava said quietly," but in the end we only have for the worse. I'm not petty, Alex, nor am I one to make my decisions out of revenge. The fact that I did so makes me angry, at myself, because this is not who I am. This is not who I want to be."

Will moved to come in between, worry clear on his face, but Levi shook his head at him. Staying silent did seem to be the best tactic, because everything they said would guaranteed put them in the crossfire. Mia seemed stunned at it all, Elisabeth just looking around in confusion, before the both of them grimaced at each other.

"Ava," Alex began, reaching out to grab her wrist.

"Good night, Alex," Ava said, pulling away," I'm leaving, but you have some fun before you go to sleep. You never have a good night's rest immediately after a fight."

She waved at the others, before exiting as well. Alex stood still for a moment, looking a bit lost in the doorframe, like someone waiting for news that would never come. He had his back towards them, but when Will scraped his throat he turned around, his usual smile back on his face.

"Anyway," he said," let's forget that and drink. You heard the lady, we don't want my night to get disturbed."

Levi's eyebrows had knit together and he looked at Ella as the chatter resumed again, Alex reassuring Elisabeth, Mia and Will that nothing was wrong. Ella glanced absent-mindedly at them for a moment, before locking eyes with Levi.

"You're wondering how your love declaration broke multiple relationships today?" she said.

"Yeah," he said," how did you know?"

"You're easy to read," she smiled, before shaking her head," and you didn't do this. Whatever that was, it didn't just happen suddenly. They've been pouring gasoline on it for a long time for it to burn this bright."

"That they have," Levi murmured.

"I have to admit," Ella said," before all this, somewhere I too thought they would end up together despite it all. They really love each other, you can see that."

"Love alone isn't enough," Levi shrugged," sometimes it means nothing at all. My mother loved me too and she still refused rehab until the very end, when I had already raised myself. She tried to shield me from that man's wrath, but in the end she still let it happen. Love -" He scoffed this time. "- for some people it's just a shackle."

She knew he wouldn't appreciate any pity or questions. Hell, it was a rare occasion that he had even shared anything about himself at all, so she just focused on something else, eyes searching his face.

"And what is love for you?" she said.

"I don't know," he said honestly," I've never found out." He looked at her, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Who knows, maybe I'm about to."

"Who knows," she repeated, smiling at him.

"As soon as Alex lets go of the idea that his first love has to be his last I hope he does too," Levi said, watching Alex laugh.

"There's nothing wrong with experiencing other kinds of love," Ella nodded," it just makes it easier to find out what you want and what you don't. Only the lucky ones find true love at first sight, but honestly, were it not for my parents I wouldn't even believe in that."

She thought about her mother, who had never even considered another marriage, instead still carrying her wedding ring on her finger.

"So," Levi asked," what about your first love?"

"Nothing special," she said," we were best friends for two years and then he asked me out. I loved him, I truly did, but we were better off as friends."

"Is that in the past now?" Levi said.

"We broke up four months ago," Ella said, adding," if you find that too messy, I understand -"

"No, it isn't like that," Levi said," I am willing to wait."

"I do want to," Ella admitted, taking his hand in hers," not for long, but I don't want to rush in things again."

"It's fine," Levi drawled," you're worth it."

"Get yourself together, lovebirds," Alex shouted then, holding up the still full bottles of booze," we still aren't wasted and the night is young."

"No, thank you," Levi said, taking Ella's hand and standing up. "Anyway, we're leav -"

Alex rushed to his feet then, locking the door and holding the key in his hand, a bright grin on his face.

"No, you're not," he said," no one's leaving this room until they can't walk anymore."