Late starts are supposed to be when you sleep in, right? Usually, AJ would utilize the shit out of this opportunity to miss school, even if it was simply for a couple of hours. Sleep until there was only ten minutes to get to homeroom and make it with one minute to spare. But nah man. Not this time. For some reason he could not sleep. Was it because he felt guilty about sending Cece a fake? A picture showing that he fucked Bailee when he did not fuck Bailee. The world was cruel and constantly presented challenges that involved girls fucking with him or Jamie, well, existing.

Such was life for AJ Tyler.

Still in a bedroom on the boat, lying on the floor, shirtless, having taken one pillow away from Bails for his own use, AJ's face stood planted in the cushion, attempting to suffocate himself to sleep. Was it even night anymore? Squinting his eyes closed, his consciousness focused on the rhythm of his breathing. He tossed from one side to the other. Twice around. One more time. Subsequently, this rewarded the floor with a boy rolling on it until he was away from the pillow, closer to the edge of the bed, and doing sit ups.

One. Two. Three.

Four. Five. Six.

Seven. Eight. Nine.

Ten. Eleven. Twelve.

Thirteen. Fourteen. Fifth...

AJ stopped in mid sit up when he asked himself those questions, completely dumbfounded at how to answer. Why did his mind always take a detour to the same dead end? First, he was thinking about how terrible he's been towards a childhood friend whose got a stick so far up her ass — it drives him insane. That somehow led to him contemplating the cobwebs that he's entangled in which are woven by Miss Cecily H-L. That devious bitch. But time and time again, he always ends up at the same dead end. Thinking about his ex.

Fucking Jamie.

As if this night or morning, whatever fucking time it was, wasn't forgiving enough, AJ's phone began to vibrate, the light blaring and the sound of it moving on the nightstand being unnecessarily loud. Hurriedly, AJ flew up and swiped his phone off the stand, silencing it. Glancing over to the bed, he surveyed Bailee. Her breathing was subtle and there was no visible rustling, which hopefully meant she was still sleeping. Deeply sighing in relief, he peered down to the blinding light that was his phone. First he noticed the time. Ah, it was 8am. Second, he noticed who was calling. He grumbled to himself, ^{"What does she want?"}

Shuffling outside, he unlocked the door and then propped it open. The chill of the morning slipped into the bedroom. After mentally prepping himself, he flipped his phone open, placed it on his ear, and walked down the hall, "You must miss me because this is the most we've talked in days."

"Why wouldn't I? You're one of my best friends, sugar."

"Ew, don't call me that. You know I hate that." Sluggishly, AJ made his way to the end of the boat where he could see the shoreline, the city, and the morning light. She wanted something. Cece never called him without getting something out of it. "I did what you said. What more do you want?"

"Oh baby, such a bark. You need breakfast and then after breakfast you need second breakfast!"

"Cut the shit." He did not get enough sleep for this bull. What did she want? SAY YOUR PEACE, WOMAN.

"First thank me and then I'll tell you what I've done." Oh no, she's done something. What did she do? Is this going to ruin your life? It's probably going to ruin your life. "You better not be thinking this is going to ruin you, it's not."

"Okay... I guess... thank you for...?"

"Setting you up with my cousin!" AJ's reaction was almost instantaneously.

"WHAT THE FUCK?! WHAT DO YOU MEAN?? IS THIS A SICK JOKE?! For real, stop playing."

"Oh stop being a damn child. You're looking at this completely wrong. You see, my dear, dear AJ. I know you. I know you better than nearly anyone in your life, maybe besides Scott, your gay lover. Anyways, what I did for you was a favor. Because I know you want Jamie back. Correct?"

"And how does me—"

"Correct." This bitch was cutting him off. "So, I simply told Auntie that you and BB were a thing. Do you know what that does for you?" Why was she his friend again? AJ was seriously questioning his life right now.

"Get me trapped?"

"No, stupid. It makes you desirable. You're no longer on the market, sweet cheeks. And neither is Jamie—"

"WHAT?!"

"Jesus, just look at your snaps. ANYWAYS, like I was saying, you're no longer 'sleeping around' which means Jamie won't be use to you not following him like a puppy. What makes this even more realistic is you and Bailee grew up with each other, so it's only natural romance could stem from that. I doubt Jamie is over you. If he was, he wouldn't have tongued you back in the hallway, so take this as a gift. Bailee will probably be hearing from her mother sooner or later. Tell her to call me when she gets the chance."

"Wait... isn't this wrong?"

"Only if you think it is." Click.

Dumbfounded. AJ was completely shocked at this new turn of events. Cece was no longer playing a childish game of who can have the longest fuck list. No, she was meddling in his love life and he kind of... liked it? Was that wrong? His left hand, which held his phone, dropped to the side, as he stared into space for a good minute or two, before deciding it was time to wake up his friend... girlfriend... friend.... girl.

The magic moment had extended far beyond that of their first meeting. A purple hue hung over them like a John Hughes movie from 1984: the princess and the hustler. They write fairy tales about this shit. Lee held her close, it felt natural like he had been doing it all his life. The opposite was true of course, the Wall Street baby had kept the world at an arm's length since before he could remember. Stella; she said her name was Stella. The lightness of her touch on his body sent electricity through his veins like a bolt of lightning, something new to replace the venom that had always been there.

There was a pain in his gut, akin to a stomach cramp. Most would put it down to some dodgy shrimp but the dog eyed ex football star knew better. The pain was reality check, a reminder of a simple fact of life; Lee McCarthy was not like most boys his age. He wasn’t like most boys at all. He wasn’t longed for this world, her world. He couldn’t let that stop him. Not this time. Now was the time to be greedy, just like daddy always said. Greed is good. Greed for love.

“Do you ever think about, like, if something changed in your story, how life would be?” Stella’s buzz had mellowed out, as both her and her newfound love interest walked to the exit of the boat. Maybe they could spend a little more time walking on the beach and listening to the gentle current… that would be wonderful, wouldn’t you think?

"All the time. There are a few things that have happened in my life that I’d probably wish were different” His response was pretty standard by all means, however Lee of course swelled on the thought for a little bit longer. He thought on about how his life would be different if he didn’t have Huntington’s. He thought on how different his life would be if he had kept his focus on football or even if he hadn’t had bothered with athletics and stuck with academics.

Luna had texted her earlier saying arrangements were made for a family servant to pick her up, since Lu would be going home separately (that honestly came to Stella as a surprise). Stella, however, cancelled those arrangements so she could spend more time with Leighton. Truthfully, she was thankful and relieved for this sudden, unexpected freedom. True, blissful freedom, where she was in the seventh heaven with this mysterious boy she hardly knew that swooped her off her feet. This was her chance! To finally get a boyfriend without her twin scaring them away!

Did Stella think about anything passed this? Like how she was actually getting home? Nope! Daddy knew she and Lu were okay, and enjoying themselves, and that was all that mattered. Honestly, her parents were probably happy that the twins were expanding from their beauty school friend group. “I don’t know how I’d feel if I didn’t have my twin. Or my parents. Or my other family. I’m so very fortunate, but I do wonder if I listened to daddy and went to your school, instead of Beauty, how things would be. Would I like something that isn’t making people feel beautiful?” Taking a moment to acknowledge the person by the door, Stel waved goodbye and brightly gleamed at the stranger, “Tell Brian and his sisters they did an amazing job! Best party of the year.” At least for her. Grabbing onto Lee’s arm, she let him lead the way.

"Let me tell you a little bit on how I personally see the world…” Leighton covered her warm hand with his own as they descended into the moonlit beach. "Life is pretty much a game of chance. We can’t predict what hand we’re going to be dealt. We can never know what the future holds and we shouldn’t regret the past. What’s done is done, all we can do is react and adapt. Right now, I would much prefer if you went to my school, that way I could see your beautiful face every damn day.”

His words caused a rewarding blush from his princess. For a moment, she looked away, embarrassed of the blooming colour on her cheeks. He made her feel tingly on the inside. This feeling was new, different, and unpredictable. It made her feel awkward and coy, yet she wanted him to say more pleasant things about her. She liked being this embarrassed. It felt like he could talk for hours and she’d never grow tired of him. One thing that would replay in her head for the rest of the night was him saying he wanted to see her beautiful face everyday. He said she was beautiful... he wanted her everyday…

He walked her towards the water, it was a warm, wonderful night and he really didn’t want it to end any time soon. "Life is a game, like I said. You just have to know how to play it and luckily for you, I’m very good at winning” Leighton’s eyes never really left Stella’s face much at all, the Hollywood hustler was completely and utterly enamoured. "Chance is the best thing in the world, it’s unbiased, it’s fair and it led me to you tonight”

“Chance?” Stella raised an eyebrow, intrigued by how he perceived life. It was different from how she saw it. Games came and went. They were fleeting to her. Honestly, if she saw life as game, she’d look at it in a different lense. She’d focus on the time spent with loved ones, not something to play to win. No one could predict tomorrow, so it was about making the most of today.

Her attention went from his eyes to the sea. Her blonde strands gently moving with the wind. “I see life more like the… ocean. Sometimes it’s like this. Calm, still, peaceful. Other times, it can be rough. Hard to bare. Both memorable though, because it’s our life! But in the end?” She turned herself towards him, gliding her hands up his chest and around his neck, interlocking her fingers and holding onto him with dear love, “Always beautiful.” Because of people like you, Lee.

"None of that beauty compares to you” That magic moment had come again as her hands gently caressed his chest and neck. He wrapped one arm around her petite frame and the other became entangled in her silky blonde hair as he pulled the beauty school knockout into his embrace. As Stella’s lips met his, Lee felt a surge of electricity course through his body. Had he just been struck by a bolt of lightning? He pulled away slowly, noses grazing and a lingering gaze into those heartbreaking eyes.

"You have to know, Stella. I’m the prince of nothing charming”

“Shuush.” Lovingly and playfully, she rubbed her nose against his. Her gentle stare never wavering from his warm, light brown eyes, “Who says I want anything more?” Stella couldn’t explain this feeling. She didn’t need him to sell her reasons to be with him, she didn’t need him to convince her his worth, she didn’t need him to be afraid to… be with her. She wanted him, he wanted her. Wasn’t that enough?

To comfort him and remind him from this day onward, she was his, she went back for a kiss, held him tightly, possessively, so he wouldn’t pull away. Letting the kiss last longer than the one before, Stella allowed him to feel the warmth against his body, intentionally breaking all barriers. The kiss was intimate, nearly sexual, her mouth slightly ajared. His scent flooded her senses. They were like two puzzle pieces connecting.

Love at first sight was real, at least for them.

After what seemed like forever, this time, she pulled away and whispered, “I want to spend the night with you.”

"That can be arranged”

She was intoxicating. Lee wasn’t the biggest drug user in the world but kissing Stella was like a hit from the most addictive substance of them all, he wanted more, more than he could probably handle. He kissed her again, pulling her close as the light breeze blew around them, like nature’s whisper telling them what they were doing was right.

One cab ride later and Lee had brought his new love to the McCarthy house of wealth and horror. Best described in one word, Leightons home was sterile. Pristine white and perfectly polished metal stainless steel surfaces. It was more like a hospital than a home. Of course this was by design, Simon McCarthy hated mess, untidiness and general slobbishness like a dog hates a bath. Honestly, in a house like this, it made sense why people refer to Lee as the American Psycho.

"This way” Interlocking their fingers together, he lead her up the stairs quietly and into his bedroom. Lee’s room was as perfectly formed as the rest of the house, there was very little mess anywhere. Work out equipment in one corner, the dogs bed in the other. A desk and mirror with his grooming routine. Conspicuous by its presence however was a windowsill of medications. Lee placed himself as a door between Stella and that view, she didn’t need to see those just yet. He traced his finger down her arm, her skin shining like crystalline. His fingers moved to her toned stomach and his lips moved closer to hers. "Are you sure?

Focused on him and nothing but him, not once considering exploring his bedroom (yet) or his house (yet), she turned her body around and placed her blonde hair over her shoulders so that her dress zipper was visible to him. She didn’t say anything back. From this point on she’d let her body do the talking. If only Lee knew who she was the daughter of, who she was connected to. After this night, he would surely find out. It was only a matter of time. To claim a daughter of Bartimaeus Locke’s, a man of two families, especially one of his pure ones... was binding.

Fortunately for Lee, Stella had more lenient parents than her half siblings, but that doesn’t change the fact that she is still one of the virgins. The other being Cyndi Green. Stella was a true maiden and princess. A bright, unfading star. Someone whose white has not been tainted.

She was in love, for better or for worse. With a hustler.

Not too different from her father, if you ask me.

He did not say another word as he slipped her zipper down and gently dropped her crimson red dress from her shoulders. Lee ran his hands down her soft to fingertip arms as he lovingly kissed her necks. It would be at this point normally that he would take what he wanted but with Stella it was different, she was giving herself to him. He turned her and their lips met electric once again as she stripped him of his Versace armour.

The lovers made their way to the bed. The time for talking was done. The night was dark but full of love.

Tell me why we’re talking when we dance so good

The fire in his head was slowly dying. The night had been long and eventful. Hyde raised his hand up to touch the crusty dried blood on his face and he scratched some of the surface stain away. He had to get off that boat, being around all those filthy damn rich kids was making his damn blood boil. Fortunately for Hyde, as he departed the boat, he crossed paths with a few undesirables that he could vent some of his frustrations on.

The dull ache in his torn up hands was fading with the rising sun that peered like a voyeur into his dimly lit life and home. Who needed sleep? Cameron Hyde certainly didn’t. Monster and violence was all he needed to keep him going. In the dark corner of the room where Hyde had situated himself, the only light to penetrate the darkness was the phone switching on to notify the dark passenger of an incoming message. He reached over to pick it up and read it. The night was dark and full of terrors, in this case so was the morning.

While the entirety of her school was on a boat for the majority of the night, the outspoken activist named after a flower spent her evening away working the snack stand at the local theater. The next morning she helped her mama make food for the army that was her Cheaper by the Dozen family. Once she finished her morning chores, she dismissed herself earlier than usual, heading to school before everyone else would get there. They had a late start, after all. So really, she was going to school ‘on time’.

Spending her night behind a stand gave her plenty of time to follow everyone’s snapchat stories, twitter pages, and Facebook statuses. After a night like that, she decided the school’s monthly charity bake sale was scheduled at a perfect time.

What a coincidence.

This was a time when everyone could use something sweet and delightful. Whether it was a celebration for new kindled romances, the biggest one going down the grapevine was Jamie and Marshall’s, or feel better sweets for heartbreak and crashing friendships.

Did you see how Ophelia and Trixie were acting?

What happened in the bathroom?! I saw Trixie leave before Ophelia... and then she almost threw herself off board!

Nothing good comes from being Hailey's friend.

Jamie is #thesavior and as a reward he got laid.

GAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Riley can get behind that. Ha.

Yo, Riley went fucking nuts. Whatever he was on, give me some of that.

He just needs the D.

Joy gets the D. The Damian D.

But the tag that gained the most likes and shares:

HOTisDead.

Here Jasmine Fulton was making sure she and those in Home Ec had prepared enough goodies yesterday. She who always ornamented her natural attributes with colors, in this case black, white, and pink, to emphasize the shading of her flesh. Jasmine was an understated beauty and her classmates labeled her since year one as a ‘bad girl’ because of the style she preferred. She was that stereotype, a rebel without a cause, like that boy Lucky was, but in this case, she was a slut too! Funny how that works, right?

Sure, she showed skin, but that didn’t mean she screwed every guy she saw and even if she did, it was no one’s business but her own. She was proud of her body and she’d own it. Jasmine was not afraid to display the form that she worked hard to keep. The form that her mama gave her. No, she wasn’t a slut. No, she did not kick doors down like some anger ridden kid. And no, she was not a girl that would play dumb to get in someone’s pants. She was just a sweet, little unforgettable thing and even if men specifically praised parts of her endlessly. Her legs, her ass, her neck, her breasts… that didn’t determine her worth. If anything, she was part of the movement of women empowerment.

As she did inventory of the sweets in and out the fridge, she smiled to herself. She loved this. And she would love seeing the satisfaction of her fellow colleagues’ faces when they tried any of these delectables. This was a visual representation of hard work and human emotions. Jolie had a crush for god who knows how long, so her cupcakes probably had a hint of desire, Nolan’s been having a hard time at home, so his cookies had a little escapism in them, and her cake… a loud gasp escaped the girl’s lips. Tugging at the ends of her pink highlighted hair, she looked at the giant hand mark in her CAKE. Sure, she made a bunch of other stuff too, but still! This cake was the one she was most proud about. She’d have to get to the bottom of this. They could’ve cut it at least… like a decent human being.

Cameron arrived at Beverly Hills High School shortly before the first class of the day. He certainly wasn’t a student there, so sitting in the parking lot that was nicer than his house was really his only option. His grip on the steering wheel tightened as his cold baby blues methodically scanned the influx of students entering the hallowed BHHS halls. He had a very specific job in mind and a very specific way to do it. Hyde glanced slightly over to his passenger seat and the hammer that sat there. He reached down and took hold of the tool. There, outside the Home EC window, Dylan Watson, he owed the wrong people a lot of money for drugs. It was time to collect. Cam hung the hammer from his belt and climbed out of his car. "WATSON! We need to have a confab my friend”

After her moment of panic, Jasmine glanced up from the table and watched a scene unfold. She saw a boy cower in front of her as she squinted to see the angry figure coming closer, and closer, to the building. Before she got involved in something that may not be as bad as it seems, she decided to grab two eggs out the fridge, leave the room, and exit the side door. Making sure her steps were quiet, she went to the corner of the building and poked her head to get a better view of the boys. She wasn’t too sure what was going on… her mama told her to not be impulsive and intervene, unless she was 100 percent sure something bad was going to happen.

Oh it was Dylan from woodshop.

Hyde pinned the young man against the wall with one hand. He knew he was strong, very strong. The redness quickly forming around Dylan’s neck was an obvious tell. “I’m glad we finally ran into each other. You owe me for all that weed. You’ve owed me for about a month now. Do you have the money?” the lack of sound coming from the kids mouth was enough to warrant a tighter squeeze from Hyde’s hand around his neck and a stronger grip on the hammer in his other hand. "Well then, guess I better take something as collateral. How about that nice Rolex you have on? And maybe...a few teeth” Cameron raises his hammer up and as he prepared to bring it down, the unmistakable sound of a smashing egg punctured the red mist that had descended. He glanced at his arm which was now drenched in egg yolk. "What the fuck?

“Hey dumbass, look.” She pointed to one of the few surveillance cameras planted around the school. “You picked the perfect place to do business!” She sarcastically cracked a smile, all the while bouncing the second egg in her hand. She took a step forward and gave him a challenging stare, “You don’t go here, do you? If you did, you would know our zero tolerance policy. Doesn’t matter if it’s intentional or not, you get violent, you get punished.”

Glancing over to the victim then back to the dark passenger, she shrugged, “That’s a nice car you have, with a very distinct license plate. Your looks are quite definable too. I’m sure the police would have no trouble at all finding you.” Unlike the general populace of her school, Jasmine was not rich and her looks gave off the vibe that she should be a kindred spirit to someone like Hyde, but she wasn’t. She chose to be better than the cards dealt to her. Fortunately for the victim in this situation, she had her brother’s number on speed dial. Her brother who was a cop. BUT, she didn’t think she needed to resort to that.

Was she scared of him? No. A man to fear was someone who didn’t need a hammer and senseless threats. In her eyes, she was dealing with a child that rarely gets his way unless he screams for it. Jasmine had no time to deal with blood on her window, while she fixed her cake. She may be intruding but she wasn’t siding with the ‘victim’ either. She wasn’t dumb and knew he got involved in something he shouldn’t have, but she’d go against everything she stood for if she let this happen right here, right now, on school grounds.

Sex on legs was right. Hyde had to be smart here. He wasn’t a student, he wasn’t even meant to be anywhere near the premises and he was on candid camera. He knew her in passing, Jasmine Fulton. He didn’t know a lot, other than she liked to dress like a biker but from first glance he knew there was something more to her, what, he wasn’t yet sure but time would tell.

Hyde lunged forward and head butted Dylan straight in the nose and the blood began to pour. He reached into the boy’s jacket and pulled out his wallet, taking what little money was in there before turning to Jasmine. "This little prick owes me a lot of money. I’ll get it one way or another” He took the money he had taken from Dylan’s wallet and shoved it down the front of her top. "For the damages” He smiles and almost angelic smile as he pointed to his own temple. "We ain’t done” He said looking at Dylan before returning his attention to the dark skinned beauty before him. "And me and you are just getting started”

Her eyes said it all. She was extremely disinterested in him. Bored and thought what she was looking at was a complete joke. Jasmine didn’t have to say anything to give off the vibe that she could care less about this idiot. He simply needed to get off school grounds, because this school had enough going on. They didn’t need a thug like him to add to the already bad reputation of BHHS. “You’re talking to me like I actually care about your business. I don’t.” She took the money out of her cleavage and threw it on the ground in front of him, “Treat yourself, you need it more.” Before he could respond, the school bell went off.

By pure dumb luck a car did park close to them with that DJ kid and his little sister, which was a good incentive to diffuse the situation, knowing Jax would foolishly intervene. “I just wanted to thank you, though.” She teasingly smiled and casually backed away, “For really giving my boobs the attention they deserved.”

Unexpectedly, Dylan, bloody face and all, tossed Jasmine a wallet, Hyde’s wallet, which he had pickpocketed the moment Hyde turned his attention to the dangerous babe. She caught it with her free hand (the right one). “I think this is a fair trade. A wallet for a wallet, hey? You shouldn’t underestimate the people you do business with. Isn’t that right, Dyl?” The kid who was cowering moments before was already gone.

With an impish smirk, she tossed the last egg for the bad boy to catch, mocking his words, but adding her own spin to it, “For your ego.”

Before dismissing herself, “I’ll see you later—” She peered into his wallet and read outloud, “—Cameron Hyde.” and then turned on her heel, prancing off towards Jax and Honey, who were walking from their car to the side door she came out of, “Hey guys, wait up!” When the siblings turned their attention to the warm, melting chocolate voice, Honey cheesing and waving wildly, Jasmine tossed Hyde’s wallet into the trash and hooked her arms on both their arms.

Not once did she have to get violent or even call her older brother.

“Who’s that?” Jax inquired, with concern written on his face.

“...a neighbor.” Jasmine lied, knowing Jax would not be okay to hear she was involved with something violent.

“Jasmineeeeeeee. Today is the bake sale, right? I have a big, fat headache and think cake will help make it better!” Honey whined, not liking how sick she felt.

“I’ll make sure there’s plenty of cake just for you.” Jasmine sweetly answered, forgetting Hyde just as fast as she met him.

Really, though, only she would’ve known Dylan knew how to pickpocket. Why you ask? Because she taught him. She sucked at woodshop. It was only a fair trade.

Katie and Noah went their separate ways once inside the high school, Noah mentioning something about an art project he had to go attend to. In all honesty, she wasn’t paying that much attention. Her life it seemed, had been turned on its head.

Last night had been weird. Her entire interaction with Scott had been weird, and then, as if the universe was taunting her, she’d had that even weirder dream. No. Nightmare. As she made her way upstream through the constant flow of her fellow students, her mind wandered, far too distracted by a certain Gearhead to focus on anything else. No. Not a certain Gearhead. Math. She was thinking about math, and that was her final answer.

Unfortunately for Katie, she wasn’t going to be able to think about Math for much longer, because her locker was blocked by a certain Gearhead. “Katie, we need to talk.” Scott Lyon. The last person that she wanted to see, on the planet, was parked in front of her locker. With none of his friends flanking him, Scott had came alone — and hopefully had come in peace. “Can we talk? Like, privately.”

Katie stood there, stunned into silence. Holy shit. This was happening, just like her dream. Talk privately? No. No, no, no. She would be doing no such thing. Her mouth opening and closing a few times while she struggled to find her voice, she finally managed to shout a response. “Nope! I am super, super busy! Sorry!” she said, much louder than she’d been expecting, drawing a few confused looks from her classmates. She turned on her heel, fast walking away from her locker, praying to whatever deity was taunting her that she had beaten out fate, that she wasn’t psychic and destined to make out with Scott Fucking Lyon.

Wait, no. This was important, why was he acting like this? Scott was quick to move after her, even putting a hand on her shoulder. “Katie, hold up. It’s important.” Scott called out before adding. “Look, I promise it won’t be weird. Nothing like…” his words trailed off as he followed her into the crowd; hoping she’d catch the reference to the night before without making him say it aloud. In public.

Katie flinched at his touch, not because she didn’t like it, but because she was afraid that she might. Taking a deep breath, she turned around to face him, looking into his eyes for half a second and nodding. She glanced around the hall, saw an empty classroom, remembered her dream, and picked the janitor’s closet instead, opening the door and pulling Scott into the dimly lit room behind her. “Okay. What is it?” she demanded, folding her arms across her chest and looking up at him.

Man this shit wasn’t fair. Scott thought as he caught himself staring at Katie for a few seconds too long. When did she get pretty? Even in dim light, she was pretty. In fact, Scott had to exercise self control, to keep himself from blurting it out. Instead, he took a deep breath, and tried to let her down gently. “I think we should…” There was a pause here, as he tried to think about how best to word what it was that he wanted to say.

“Stop? You know, like…. stop. Just stop. Never talk to each other again, no arguing, no screaming. No looking. No awkward. Just… stop.” There. That got what he wanted out, and did so smoothly; at least he thought so. “I think we’re wasting too much of our life screaming at each other. Is it even… I dunno, worth it?”

Holy shit. She wasn’t psychic. Thank God! He didn’t want to talk to her! Ever! This was great! She could just snip all the confusing feelings before they even had the chance to bloom. This was amazing. “I agree. Totally,” she said, nodding enthusiastically. They stood there, staring awkwardly around the closet, neither sure of how to go about this, until finally, Katie reached for the door. “I’ll...see you around,” she said awkwardly, before heading out of the small room, and back into the flow of students, off to class.

Fantastic. Wonderful. It was done. Scott could quit the chess club, cut off all ties to anyone that could possibly lead him into awkward situations involving her, and move on with his life. As he watched her walk out of the closet, Scott was left wondering one thing: why the fuck did he feel so empty now? After giving her a few moments to get to where she was going, Scott stepped out as well. The deed was done, and now he could go about his day.

He should have went with Plan B: Kiss her.

“Ellie, just go talk to him already!”

Elliott was pulled out of what was definitely not a daydream about Miles Michaelson by his sisters voice in his ear, a stage whisper that damn near gave him a heart attack. He turned to face his twin, his usual look of annoyance plain as day. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Elliott said, glancing down to the book he held in his hand, and focusing on the pages rather than his sister.

Ivy let out a guttural groan, one that drew the attention of other students for a moment, before they realized it was Ivy and continued about their day, plenty used to her theatrics by now. Shaking her head, she kept talking, despite Elliott’s obvious attempts to ignore her. “You are insufferable. He is a boy! Not a monster! Boys are easy! Just go talk to him!” Ivy exclaimed, her arms flailing about, expressive as ever.

Elliott looked up from his book and over at Miles, feeling his stomach clench as he pictured himself walking over to him. He looked back at Ivy, her expression having morphed into one that he knew all too well, the classic ‘You know I’m right’ face. Shutting his book with a harumph, Elliott walked over to where Miles was standing, putting up some flyer. “Heyyyyy! Miles! Nice...flyer. Really cool, uh, bear.” Holy shit this was a disaster.

Turning his head, his mess of blonde hair following along with him, the artist gave that cheesy, adorable smile he was known for, “Really, man? Thanks!” After stapling the flyer on the board, he smoothly turned on his heel to face his junior, who gave him some good pointers in his writing and sophomore Shakespeare essays, “It’s cute, not one of my best stuff, but hey. I’m a boy that helps his friends. Nero needed me, so how could I decline? Plus, doesn’t he remind you of a teddy?! Or is that just me…” That was probably just him. Thanks, mom. His mom compared people to stuffed animals all the time, so in return, he does it too. “Anyways!” He took a step closer to the boy he was chatting with, his eyes finally meeting with Elliott’s. “What’s poppin’?”

Elliott’s breathing hitched. What’s poppin? What was poppin? Nothing, that’s what. Elliott had gone into this conversation with absolutely nothing prepared. “Oh, you know...stuff.” Down the hall a few feet, Ivy’s face fell into the palm of her hand. How was her brother this hopeless? As Ivy resisted the urge to barge in, Elliott’s face flushed crimson, and he did something he hated doing. He looked to Ivy for help. It was a quick glance, but enough for his sister to understand, their unspoken communication practically impeccable by this point. ASK TO HANG OUT Ivy mouthed to her brother, about as conspicuously as could be.

Elliott looked back to Miles, an awkward grin now plastered across his face. “So, y’know, I was thinking, we could like hang out sometime? I don’t know, there’s that movie night at Captain Cuddles on Friday, could be fun?” Elliott said, praying that Miles was oblivious to the fact that he was the most awkward person on the planet.

“Star Wars!” Excitably, and loudly, Miles shouted. “Dude, I’d be so down. CC’s got the best pizza out there, AND I can bring my pillow.” He loved his pillow. He needed to retrieve it from his locker. He’s been away from her for far too long.

Why did Elliott like this child? “Yo, what if I see if some of my boys want to come along and then we can totally hit the arcade after the movie. From what I hear it’s open late and milkshakes are being served alllll night.” ‘His boys’ were a bunch of geeks.

How did he respond? Say no? That seemed rude. He didn’t want to seem rude. Elliott, in his best impression of someone who has their life together, smiled awkwardly. “Uh yeah, totally. Ivy and Victoria are probably gonna come too, so like, it’ll be a big thing,” Elliott said. “So, uh, yeah. It’s a date. I mean, like, it’s a plan. An event. A rendezvous if you will.”

“Radical!” Miles grabbed Elliott’s shoulder and gave it a gentle shake, “Star Wars, pizza, milkshakes, and chill vibes. Can’t get any better than that. Oh! One last thing.” Miles, after what seemed to feel like forever, took his hand off of Elliott’s shoulder and ran it through his unruly hair, cooly, too cooly, “Sometime soon let’s share our work, yeah? Maybe go to The Secret Tea Garden. My mom just added to the menu, but she hasn’t told me what’s new so I got to go and find out.”

Two dates in one, do you say yes?

Elliott very nearly fainted. The hand on his shoulder, and then the way Miles ran his hand through his hair, it should’ve been illegal it was so hot. Breathe, Elliott. Breathe. Collecting his thoughts, Elliott smiled one last time at MIles, this one genuine, the awkwardness cleared away by the invitation to tea. “That sounds like fun,” he said simply.

Off to the side, Ivy shot him a thumbs up. Maybe she had been right.

Ah, man. Suddenly, and unexpectedly, Miles hit his own head with the stack of flyers. He would’ve face palmed, but his hand held a bunch of paper. “Speaking of my work, I totally forgot it…” He had to go to the library and make sure no one stole his pencils. And yes, his work. BUT. Those pencils were EXPENSIVE. His mom would kill him. Okay, she wouldn’t. She’d give him a pouty face and whine a lot, but even so! Those were his favorite pencils and he didn’t have back up sketches for that volume! “I will see you later, Elliott. You, me, a few other people, Friday. Fun times to be had!” Before Miles started to wheely away, he gave that charming, goofy smile of his and an adoring, playful wink, “See ya!”

As Miles rolled off, Ivy sauntered over to where a very smitten Elliott was still standing.

“So was I right, or was I right?”

Kit felt like her feelings of aggression toward the pizza shop owner were totally validated. First, the guy only brought out plain ass cheese pizza, not a topping in sight! Then, to top it off, he’d given her quarters to play games, but hadn’t mentioned even once that there was an entire collection of them behind a door! How was she supposed to know!? There wasn’t a sign! There wasn’t a window! Was she supposed to just assume!? To open doors with no reason or invitation?! She had been raised better than that!

Kit tore open the door to her mother’s car with her free hand. One hand was busy shoveling the last piece of pizza into her mouth as she lifted herself up into the passenger’s seat. “Professor, do we know who’s in charge of this eatery!? Because they. Are. EVIL!” She declared, glancing at her mother. For all intents and purposes, Kit had forgot about her mother’s mood the night before.

Rather than answer her daughter’s question, the older woman tsked as she glared at the cheesy pizza, “You know how I feel about you eating in the car.” There was A LOT of things Molly let her daughter get away with, eating messy ass pizza in the car was not one of them. “Stains on my clean leather is pure evil.” To avoid from getting bitter about the hair change, Molly simply decided to not look her daughter in the eyes, turning her head to glance into her rearview mirror.

“This pizza isn’t goin’ anywhere but down my throat where it can drown out my horrible, no good, very bad day.” Kit muttered, as she shoveled a huge bite of the food into her mouth. To her credit, she’d gone so far as to bring napkins along with her. Blowing a raspberry, she glanced at her mother, “so, the Doc says you’re still in a pretty bad mood…” Kit said, before turning her attention to outside the car, staring at the road before them. “I can only assume that I’m at the heart of the issue.”

Starting the car up, Molly bluntly responded, no sugar-coating in this household, “You are.” For the most part, Molly raised Kit to be stronger than most girls, strong than she was when she was that age, but that didn’t change that her daughter was still young and felt. “But.” With her right hand, she gently tapped her daughter’s leg, “I’ll get over it. Hair can grow back. As for the guy that owns the place, he’s a very rich, very powerful man. Bartimaeus Locke. Ty, for short. You know him as Hailey and Henry’s dad.”

“He doesn’t look like a very powerful man! He looks like a real douchebag to me. Hailey and Henry’s dad huh? That gives me an idea… Did you know that my new best friend is sucking Henry’s dick? I shall use this my advantage, and get infinite game tokens…” Kit was scheming now, getting ahead of herself. She could abuse Min’s relationship with Henry, probably! “OH. That reminds me! I invited a friend over for tomorrow night. The Doc suggested that I ask you. So, here I am.”

“That’s fine if—” Here was the ultimatum. “You babysit Summer’s demon duo so she can come to date night with me and Oliver, and obviously, her hubby. Her eldest won’t be in town this weekend, so I need you to take the hit. I want to be spoiled by your father.” Plus, she wouldn’t trust anyone she wasn’t close with to watch those two little shits that reminded her of Mini Alex and Mini Oliver. It was horrible. They were walking disasters.

“Yeah, I can do that Sunday, whatever. But I’m closing the door.” The gauntlet was laid down by Kit back at her mother, and she had a feeling that she had the power in this particular situation. Babysitting Summer’s wild children? That was a big thing to offer, and Kit knew her mom wouldn’t turn down the offer, despite her having some added weight to her response. It was bargaining.

“... any particular reason why you’re closing the door?” Molly narrowed her eyes, but kept her attention on the road. They were bargaining and it was a matter of wits and wagers. Terms and conditions. “You do know you will need to take them out for a little bit, if they’re cooped inside the house they’ll break something.” They always broke something.

“I’m closing the door because me and my friend are gonna play video games and I don’t want dad complaining we’re too loud. Look, if I’m takin’ them out, on top of babysitting, then I’m closing the door.” Kit folded her arms over her chest. The final offer was made. “It’s ridiculous to expect that much of me, I’m just a baby.” She blew a raspberry, and shoved the last bit of pizza in her mouth, chewing with her mouthful. “It’s not like it’s a big deal. I close my door all the time. Different reason though. You know why.”

“... okay.” Molly smiled. “But those rascals need to be in bed by 8. Don’t let them eat all the stuff I let you eat, or you get no gaming done.” Her fingers tapped on the steering wheel, before she glanced over at Kit, “It better be just gaming tomorrow.”

Haha, score. Kit had made a deal with her mother, and she’d came out on top. Now, there wasn’t a thing in the world that could ruin her day. New hair, new friends, new Kit! Vastly upgraded Kit. “I mean, it should be. She has a… Collar thingy she wears and she belongs to Hailey Green. She's real pretty though so I might swoop in for a kiss. No fear, no fucks given. I can handle the kids, that's not a biggie. Kids like me because I am small.” Made sense to her. Kit shrugged her shoulders, but was ultimately happy she'd secured a private night with her new friend, with the door closed to keep the parentals out of their hair! How exciting.

What was up with the collar trend? She blamed Alex’s brother, Jericho. He made it go viral with her forever idol, Amity. “... would Hailey be okay with you kissing what is her’s?” Molly raised an eyebrow, her daughter was audacious.

“I dunno. But like, you can’t own somebody. I like to kiss people. I kissed Sam. Owen’s friend. And I kissed Selena. I don’t like her anymore.” Kit shrugged her shoulders, before presenting her new life philosophy to her mother. “If I see someone and I like ‘em then I kiss ‘em. It’s how I show my appreciation for the human body now, Mom. It’s not a phase! I hope it’s not a phase. Why didn’t you tell me kissing was this great?!”

How does a mother respond to that? Why was her daughter kissing everyone she liked?! After trying hard to think of how she should respond, Molly simply answered, “...don’t get mono.” Really, Molly couldn’t tell Kit how she should express affection. Everyone expresses differently. Oliver was the only man she’s kissed! Key word. Man. There was ONE time, she and Summer tried it, but Oliver doesn’t need to know that. That was before they were a thing, anyways.

“Wanna see the video of me kissing Sam? It’s totally on YouTube, dude. Isn’t that rad?! I’m like a star! I wonder what I’d be if I like, kissed with less clothes on! Like, like I dunno. Some kind of outfit! Like, like my cheerleading outfit! Do you think I’d get a lot of views?! Dude, I bet I would. I COULD BE A STAR, MOTHER. What the fuck is Mono?” Kit suddenly zero’d in on the word she didn’t understand. Mono? Like… monotype team? In Pokémon. That had to be it! But what did that have to do with kissing?

“THAT’S ENOUGH!” Okay, Molly couldn’t handle this. She needed to talk to her husband, ASAP. Where was she learning this from? Or more importantly, WHO was she learning this from? “You got your new hair and a closed door tomorrow, I don’t want to hear anymore about this new… you.” Not right now. Kit needed to stay her innocent baby. The car started to speed.

“Gotcha, If it makes you feel any better, the Doc says all kids grow up eventually, and that it’s unhealthy and unreasonable for parents to assume that their kids will be perfect innocent angels for ever. He says, and I quote ‘you’re not raising kids, you’re raising adults.’ You’re raising someone that will eventually contribute to society! What kind of contribution do you want to make?” Kit’s words were meant to soothe, but she knew her mother well enough to know that sense often couldn’t be spoken into her. “I’m just sayin’, y’know? Hey, you know what else?!”

“What.” Molly’s voice grew cold. Yeah, they were raising a girl who would be an adult, but that didn’t mean she had to become a slut. As the mother, it was her job to make sure her daughter’s ‘contribution’ was a positive one and that she knew, yes she was growing up, but she was still a teen. If Kit was trying to convince her to be okay with this newfound news about how the person that came out of her vagina will live her life from this day onward, Kit was strongly mistaken.

“I qualified for the qualifiers for Evo! THAT means that I might be going to the biggest fighting game convention in the world! AS A COMPETITOR, mom! Do you understand how big of a deal this is for me!? I’m out of redbull, we have to solve this travesty so that I can keep training. I gotta practice. Gotta always be practicing. Practice, practice, practice, professor.” Kit was done with talking about her ‘personality change,’ and was instead focusing on the positive. She was going to the big time! Sure she’d played in a local game here and there, but nothing as important as EVO, it was Evo for fuck’s sake! Couple that with her possibly starting a stream team with the Vanilla Sunrise… Kit was on rise like a fucking sputnik! “I’m so excited! I can’t believe I did it. I didn’t think I’d ever do it.”

At least with this, Molly could approve. “Get some pointers from JJ, I’m sure he’ll help you be the best.” Molly unfortunately could not get gaming around her head. She did play when she was younger, but never to the level of her husband and his best friend and his best friend’s family. “and for your redbull, is there not an alternative? Too much of something is never a good thing.”

“I mean, tea is okay. I guess. But it’s also gay. But I think I’m gay. Oh, uh, by the way mom. I’m… gay. I hope that’s okay.” Kit gave her mother a thumbs up. As far as coming out parties went? It could have been better, but hey. Kit knew what she was now, she was just thinking it before. Now, it was a definite fact. Kit was gay as helllll. But that Damian dude was something… oh man, being a teen was tough. “But I think I still like guys. So I guess I’m only half gay. Is that okay?”

“I’m no homophobe, Kathryn. Yes, it’s okay that you are interested in both genders, but please, for the love of god, do not kiss EVERY person you like. That’s like giving them a treat before they even deserve it.” For now it was just kissing, but what if tomorrow it was her flower?!

“I only kiss the people I like that are cute. You don’t see me kissing like… A Double, do you? I like him. He’s the hookup! Alright, take me to the grocery store. We shall browse the teas and also buy me a twelve packer.”

Molly gave up. She couldn’t right now. “...fine.” Oliver was going to hear it when she got home.