Harmony High - Sequel

Avery

"I have a feeling that he's not cheating on you Avery. But you're a smart girl. You should already know that any guy that has the privilege to date you, would probably never cheat."Leo says with a shrug. Ha. Privilege to date me. Thats a hoot. Although people may think that its really quite hard to get into a relationship with me, it's actually pretty easy. I'm not picky, quite the opposite actually. I just like to date guys that make me happy.

"Honestly," Leo begins again, ripping me away from my thoughts "Why would just a picture of the two of them hugging cause this." He says with a frown "Jumping to conclusions was never and has never been you."

"Well our relationship is a bit on the rocks..." I say, feeling my cheeks heat up in shame and embarrassment "Its not that I still hate Jane." I say quickly, changing the subject." Honestly I never really hated her. It was just such a sucker punch to my ego after being cheated on. But I'm over it now. But one thing is for sure. If I find out that anything at anytime has happened between her and Will that isn't strictly platonic, I will make her life hell inside and outside of Harmony." Leo raises an eyebrow as he shakes his head at me.

"I would hate to get on your bad side. But...what about Will? You couldn't only blame it on Jane." I nod my head at his statement in agreement.

"You're right. But to be completely honest...I don't know. I wouldn't wanna ruin his life. I love him too much for that. But...well...thats on him. Anyways, it's pretty bad that we're talking about the destruction of my relationship. As far as I know, at the moment, he's been faithful. So lets just hope that it stays that way." Leo nods and looks down at his watch, and then his eyes widen in surprise.

"You're going to be late! For your date!" He gets up and hurriedly begins grabbing my clothes from the floor and handing them to me. Don't worry. We didn't have any sex or partake in any funny business. When I showed up at Linnies house in tears and an expensive chanel black and gold pleated dress, covered in tears and melted snow, to my surprise Leo had answered the door. Before I could say one word he was already ushering me into the home, and rushing to get me towels and clothes from Linnies room. After seeing the picture...I don't know. It really messed me up. I mean knowing that Will is having coma induced fantasies about our mutual best friend is one thing. But to see him tightly holding Jane like that...it brought me back to the night where I found Jane and Allen going at it. On my bed. And then the picture was sent soon after I finished getting ready for Will and I was all dressed up to the nines, truly looking forward to the date. And then...well I got the picture and walked the five or six miles to Linnies house without even thinking about it.

"Avery come on! I thought that we decided that you were going to go on this date to confront him on everything!" Leo said, quickly grabbing his car keys. I shrug.

"I don't think that I wanna go..." I say quietly, swinging my legs over the side of his bed. Leo rolls his eyes.

"Avery, put on this dress and start acting your age." He says, handing me the gold slinky dress and black pumps I picked out from Linnies closet. I sigh and take the clothes from him and then I head into his rooms bathroom and begin to change. When I come out, he looks me up and down and smiles.

"You look beautiful." He says it so quietly but I can hear the longing in his voice. My cheeks get hot and I wave at him to get up so that we can get going. When we're a block from my house I watch as I see a familiar ford pick up driving away. I tell Leo to follow it and he nods. When the pick up drives into a gas station and Will gets out, I hop out of Leos passenger seat, and go up to him. When he see's me his eyes widen in surprise as I get into his pickup and wait for him to finish filling up his gas. When he gets in, before he can ask a thing I kiss him deeply and he follows suit, kissing me back just as deeply. When I pull back I smile.

"I trust you and love you Willy boo. But for your own good don't cheat on me, because I promise you will regret it. I won't do anything horribly mean, or try to mess up your life, but you will never hear from me or see me again. Honestly, i'll just be like a memory. And I can promise you that you will definitely regret that. Now lets go do what you were planning to do." He holds my eyes for a minute more and then smiles and kisses me quickly.

"I love you Avery. Lets go." He says, and begins driving.

Leo

Watching Avery leave with Will was something that I hated watching. It felt like being punched in the gut. When she said that she didn't want to go back in my house (or well Linnies) I should've just left it at that. But I just had to be the good guy. Again. I keep hoping that if pushed enough she'll end up dumping Will on her own. As I pull out my mind continues to think of all of the possibilities that could've happened had she not had a boyfriend. I sigh, and continue driving.

Tristan

"Tristy!" Avery calls. I'd know that tinkly bell sounding voice anywhere. I turn around in the hallway to find her skipping towards me dragging a cute blonde with her. I tilt my chin as a greeting and wait for her to speak.

"Tristan this is Kristin! My beautiful cousin!" Avery says excitedly, putting a dyed curl behind her ear. I wave at the blonde who nods at me. Well...she's definitely attractive. Her blond hair is long and reaches her waist. Her blue gray eyes are alive and wide and look up at me with curious interest. I also notice her small waist and dancer like posture. I can also see some of the similarities between her and Avery. The high cheek bones, and heart shaped faces. The same button noses. Yeah, I definitely like what I see.

"Its nice to meet you." I say, extending my hand with a smile. She looks at it and smiles, then grips my hand softly.

"Nice to meet you too." She says, with a surprisingly deep and sultry voice. Not deep as in masculine, but more velvety and smooth sounding.

"Sooooo Tristan I was thinking that you could escort Kristin to her upcoming party this weekend! It'll be great!" Avery says with a huge smile.

"But...i've just met her." I tell Avery with a frown. Avery rolls her deep green eyes and pouts.

"Don't be stupid! You can get to know her! By hosting her!" Avery says, tapping her foot in annoyance.

"Avery if he doesn't-" I cut Kristin off.

"No no i'd love to escort you. I just don't want you to feel uncomfortable or awkward going with a complete stranger." I say, looking down at my Vans. When I look back up she's smiling widely.

"Here's my number." she says, handing me a little purple post it note. "Call me later." She winks and walks off with Avery, leaving me...well...aroused.

Oliver Hemingway

"It's not me... it's not really you either. I just..." My girlfriend said. We were talking through Skype, cause she was in Italy while I was, well, here. Nothing special. I got the impression she was breaking up with me, but did a horrible job at it.

"Kiki, I get it." I said with no emotion.

She looked at the screen, looking at me. I felt her stare. Swallowing hard, I waited until she said more. But she stood silent.

"We're breaking up." I said.

Looking away, her bottom lip started to tremble. Somehow, I wasn't upset at all. Actually, I felt relieved. Which was weird and very uncommon. I moved my mouse to the end call button, but before I could press it, she spoke up.

"Oli, I really don't want to break up with you." her voice was so weak.

"It's for the best," I reassured her. "Let's just leave it at that. We had a great run Kiki. I'll see you on the other side."

And I clicked it, her face disappearing into the computer somewhere. I closed my laptop and shut my eyes for a few minutes. They hurt, but I'd be fine. Standing up from my desk chair, I looked through the window and saw the snow falling. Bloody snow. Did we really need this? No! All we could do with it is freeze. Not a good idea.


***

I found myself in my normal hangout. The bar on Green's Street. It was called Henry & Sons. A drink was in my hand, a cold beer. And the TV above my head was playing some stupid American sport that I wasn't willing to watch. Being a college student, I should've been studying. But somehow, I didn't give a fuck.

Looking around the bar, I tried to find a good girl. Someone I could sleep with then forget about. A few caught my attention, but one for sure got it. I smiled, walking up to the girl.

"Oliver," I said, smiling at her.

She was hesitant, but then said, "Luna,"

She had to be a high-schooler that snuck in. But I didn't care.


William Franco

Avery and I finally went on that date. The one where everything is super intimate, romantic, elegant, and expensive. The one that shows you are a true couple. Really committed and really in love. Every time I tried to remember the date, I couldn't help but smile like a child. She made me happy, just thinking about her made me happy. I couldn't believe I had her, I was a lucky man.

"Will?" I heard a frantic Lena.

Looking around my room, I noticed I was alone. My phone was off. Was I still asleep, or was I going crazy?

"WILL!"

Again.

I started my way for my bedroom door then caught her by surprise, bumping into me. At least it was a soft hit, so I just grabbed her by the shoulders to straighten her out. She had no time to smile, apologize or thank, because, I could tell, there were so many thoughts running through her head.

"What's going on?" I said calmly but sternly.

"Chris is gone, he's missing."

Jane Wills

I swallowed hard, letting the pills swim down my throat in a quick second. Opening my eyes, I took in a deep breath.

"Alright, are you up for today's workout?" My mother jumped in her brand new Nike's.

"No," I smiled. "You go yourself ma,"

She gave me a hard look, then smiled back, like she would when she jokes. i walked up to her, pulling her into a soft hug. Taking in some air, I caught the scent of her perfume, Britney Spears. It's her favorite, she always wears it.

My phone stared to ring, the Doctor Who theme song going off. I rummaged through my pockets and pulled it out. My mother rolled her eyes at the ringtone.

"Hello," I said.

"Jane!" It was Kristin. "It's so great to hear you. Ha-ha. Watcha doing?"

"Kristin! I've been doing pretty much nothing. Why?"

"Okay, great. Would you mind helping me set up the party for tonight?"

"Yeah, totally."

"Great, I'll see you then."

"I'll come in an hour, 'kay?"

"Yeah."

We both hung up and I got ready.

Kristin

"I know that this is a drag," I say to Jane as she helps me move the expensive Italian couch into the playroom, in the back of Averys house. "I usually have people do this for me, but poor planning and all of that." I finish with a shrug. Jane shakes her head.

"No its fine. Us, middle class people, do this every time we set up a party." Jane says with a sweet smile. I grimace.

"Yeah well, I'm glad that this is the first and last time I'll have to do this. My biceps hurt." I tell her, cracking my knuckles. She jokingly rolls her eyes and picks up the small glass coffee table, while I go into the kitchen to check on the food. Avery is standing over the stove with a smile as she mixes something in a pot. She looks like a young cute little housewife with her smudged apron and sweet smile.

"So what exactly are you making." I ask sitting in the luxury bar chair, while resting my elbow on the kitchen island.

"Well I've already finished my mini sticky rice balls. Some have fish, some have cooked pureed vegetables. The chicken meat balls are in the heater, and the avocado dip to go with them is chilling in the fridge. Right now making the artichoke dip for the pita chips. And in the oven are several batches of weed brownies, and ecstasy topped chocolate chip and sugar cookies. My magic-super-duper Avery punch is in the freezer." My eyebrows have been raised since weed brownies.

"Is that the same punch you made at Auntie Links house last year?" She nods her head excitedly. Even if you only had one shot of that punch, you would probably still get wildly drunk. Although it does taste good. Like really good.

"Why so many drugs?" Avery finally looks at me with a "Oh come on" look.

"K, I haven't had a wild party like this since I first started dating Will. I miss getting trashed. And not only that, but mom and dad won't be back until next week. That gives me more than enough time to nurse this place back afterwards." Avery says as if that's the most obvious conclusion to come to in the world. It's weird. Although I know Avey like the back of my hand, seeing something so wild come out of this 5'0, curly haired, cutesy teenaged girl is still something that leaves my head spinning. She looks like the type of girl that would throw a cute little slumber party. Not the project X, drugs everywhere, slutty dress, sex on the stairway type. She puts a curl behind her ear, and smiles a dimple 100 watt pearly white smile at me. Yep, looks can definitely deceive.

"I know that I look bummy as all types of hell, but no need to stare at my grossness." Avery says with a giggle. I smile and roll my eyes at her. "You should start setting up the music. You know how to work the tech wear to play the same play list in every room on every speaker right?" She asks. Ah state of the art electronics, what would I do without you? I nod.

"Yeah. A lot of it is just club mixtapes and the project X soundtrack." Avery nods in approval. I hop off of the bar chair and begin thinking.

"We're gonna make some bad decisions tonight, aren't we?" I ask over my shoulder as I walk out of the kitchen, to start putting random jello shot glasses, beers, and liquor in every room. All Avery does is chuckle . I'll take that as a hell yeah.

"Don't forget that no one, and I mean no one, is allowed upstairs. Especially your new friend Jane." Avery says, a weird tone in her voice. I shoot her a look.

"Why?" I ask, confused at her tone.

"Just...just do what I ask. And watch her interactions with Will please." I just shrug. Jane is an all around good person, no matter what bad decisions or mistakes she's made in the past. I know that, I can see it in her eyes. But Avery is my cousin. So just for the hell of it, I'll do what she's asked.

Jane Wills

I knew it. Avery has been acting weird with me ever since I stepped into this house. But why. What did I do to her? Does a party with me remind her of last year's? When I slept with Allen? I wouldn't do anything stupid like that ever again.

"Kristin, I think I finished with the setting up." I said, walking into the living room.

She turned her head to look at me and then flashed me a smile. I caught her working on some computer the was connected to a stereo system. I saw a few song titles I recognized on the computer screen. I walked up closer to her.

"So, when is the party staring?" I asked.

***

And it started.

The music was pumping and the crowd was loud. Avery's food was going down everyone's throats, especially the weed brownies. I was happy to know what was in them, because, well, I was not going to start taking drugs, even for a party. I was downing her punch though, it was delicious. I had Emmett standing right next to me, kissing my neck. Even though I had warned him about those damn brownies and cookies, he forgot and chowed down. So now, he was on cloud nine.

"Babe, can we go upstairs?" he whispered into my ear, making my heart race.

I turned to face him, pulling my hands around his face. I felt his stubby cheeks, noticing he didn't shave for a few days. His eyes were swimming in lust, complete lust. That used to always make me crazy for sex, but now, all I wanted to do was be with Emmett. Nothing lustful or automatic. Nothing just for the fun, pleasure, or sex. I wanted to truly be with him. To love him. And right now, that's not what he wanted because he wasn't himself.

"You don't want to," I smiled.

"Yes, yes I do Jane." He gave me a wide smile.

"Oh Emm," I kissed him softly, pulling away before anything else could happen. "Not today,"

"Why not?" I felt his hands run down my body, to my waist.

"Come with me,"

I let my hands fall off from his face and took his hand in mine. We walked through the house and to the bathroom. Thankfully there wasn't a line now, so I took him inside. I flipped on the lights. These guys had a really great house, so being in the bathroom was amazing. Everything was modern, rich, and beautiful. The mirror even made me jealous of it with it's silver frame and sparkly glass. The walls were a dark navy color, and the pictures on them were of the sea.

"Are we really going to downgrade to bathroom sex?" Emmett asked.

"No," I chuckled.

Jumping onto the sink counter, I let myself get comfortable. He just looked at me, a little confused.

"I wanted to get out of the crowd, the music... too loud." I smiled, waving my hand next to my head.

He walked up to me, put his hands on either side of me, leaning against the counter. His lips were literally two inches away from mine. I don't want to take advantage of him. I don't want to have sex with him when he's high. He won't remember it. It won't be special.

"You ate the cookies too, didn't you?" I licked my lips.

All he did is nod, and close the gap between us by smashing his lips against mine. I felt everything in me jump as I kissed him back. His lips were so soft, I couldn't resist. Kissing him always made me feel complete and amazing. He bit my lip, making me giggle. I pulled away, taking a deep breath.

"You're so horny Emm,"

"Tell me about it."

A sudden surge of knocking on the door started causing me to jump.

"Aye, how long are you gonna be in there?" A British bloke asked from the other side.

"Sorry, be right out." I replied.

"Yeah, be patient man." Emmett added.

"Shh," I covered his mouth with his hand.

It was silent for just a moment. Emmett bite my hand but I pushed it more against his face just to show him that didn't bother me.

"Take the sex to the bloody bedroom! I want to take a slash in there!"

I pushed Emmett lightly so I could jump off the sink. Opening the door, I saw a tall guy with deep blue eyes and perfectly styled brown hair. Emmett was just behind me, staring a well.

"Ahhh, a handsome Brit. You must get all the girls?" Emmett said from behind me.

"Get outta here." the Brit sighed, rolling his eyes.

As we passed him, I led him back to the kitchen. Avery was there with her boy, Will. Walking into the kitchen, I felt something heat up at the pit of my stomach. Then I realized why. Will was there. And he was looking at me.

There was still a loadful of food on the kitchen island, except since all the food Avery made was already gone, they ordered some pizza. There was a group of like ten people on the kitchen as we stepped inside.

"I may be horny," Emmett whispered in my ear. "But I am more hungry!" and he dashed to the island, picking up two slices.

I followed behind him and he handed me one of them.

"I'm good babe," I smiled.

He just shook his shoulders and started to eat. It's like I felt everywhere he was and that scared me. I knew exactly where he was without even looking at him. And when I looked up, just to look up, I caught Avery looking at me. And then I knew.

"Shit," I huffed under my breath, looking back down at the ground.

"Ave! Jane! Will! Oh, Emmett!" I heard Kristin yell over the music.

Looking back up, I saw her walking in with a bottle of beer in one hand, and both arms risen above her head. Emmett turned around and looked at her, taking his last bite of pizza.

"Kristin! What up!" Emmett said with a wide smile.

I took his arm, smiled at Kristin, and started to run out of the kitchen.


***

"Good morning sunshine!" I smiled, rolling over in my bed to face Emmett.

"Did we have sex?" Emmett asked right away.

Giggling, I put my hand on his face.

"No, I didn't let it happen. Not when you're high."

"Good," He smiled. "I mean, I'd rather remember... you know."

I just nodded and kissed him, letting myself forget everything and just remember that Emmett and I are meant to be.

I don't want to remember what happened last night. I even managed to skip all of it just to try to forget.

William Franco

"Ave, you are way too horny." I said, my lips pressing against hers.

"And so are you." she replied, running her hand down my chest.

The party was so alive around us and even though we were in the center of it, in the living room, no one seemed to notice us. We were on her couch, just making out. The music Kristin played was smashing and I couldn't get enough of it. Right now, some Deadmau3 was blasting about.

It was loud. It was big. There were tins of people. And even the air looked thick from all the smoking. This place was a real party. And I guess, I was fine with that.

"Wanna get a drink?" Avery asked as we pulled away from another kiss.

"Yes," I sighed, licking her lips.

She giggled, letting me get at her again. We made out for a minute more and then got off the couch. I held her hand as we got to the kitchen.

And that's when it all started.

With a beer in my hand, I stared at Kristin. She had lowered her arms and stared at where Jane and Emmett ran off to. The front door. There was shock in her eyes. No wonder. They did just dart off. I didn't know the reason why. Maybe Kristin's excitement scared them? or maybe Jane felt sick?

"Why?" Kristin finally broke the silence.

The music was still blasting, but then tension in this kitchen felt completely cut off from everything else.

"It doesn't matter. Slut had the urge to fuck, so she went with him. Let's party!" Avery said without even taking a breath.

Both Kristin and I looked at her. Maybe in some dread. But we looked at her because of what she said. She called Jane a slut. Why would she call Jane a slut?!

"What?" she asked, looking at the both of us.

"Why would you call her that Ave?" Kristin asked, bewildered.

"What do you mean?" Avery wasn't even moved, she had on a bright smile as she sipped her wine cooler.

I leaned against the kitchen island so she could actually look at me. She did. Her eyes scanned me, running up and down my body. Maybe she was trying to read my body language. Or she was probably surprised that I moved from standing next to her to across from her. Kristin joined me.

"Okay..." Avery waved her hand in front of us. "I didn't mean it in a bad way, she probably ate some of those cookies and had the urge. You can't blame her. We all have the E in us. And she wanted privacy..."

"It's the drugs, it makes her bitchy." I said, smiling a weak smile, but it was there. That was the only way to explain this. "Well, she's needing sex and is bitchy." I added.

Kristin nodded slowly and drank her beer.

"Exactly. Sorry 'bout it," Avery said.

I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, trying to stand the awkward tension.

"OKay! OKay! Where are the yumms?!" I heard a British guy yell form behind us.

I turned my head and saw a tall guy with a beer in his hand, looking over the kitchen. We were all actually staring at him.

"You know, cookies? Brownies? Don't tell me it's all gone. That's some good nosh." he added.

Drunk. Or. High. Take your pick.

"Oliver," I heard a girl grunt.

And then, right behind him, I saw Lena. She was rolling her eyes at him. He looked at her and flashed her a great smile.

"Come on, a guy's gotta eat."

She walked up to him, pulling him toward her. He almost tripped over himself as he got next to her, pulling her into a big hug. That was really weird.

"Get me some nosh, cousin!" Oliver yelled.

What.

"Oli, calm down. There's some pizza right there." Lena said with a laugh.

"I want sweets."

They separated and Oliver walked up to the island, treating himself to some food. Lena looked over at us and gave us an apologetic smile.

"My cousin's a drunk guys, I apologize on his behalf." she said. "Oliver Hemingway everybody, The Drunken Arse!" she mocked a British accent.

"You better watch yourself with the accusations lil' Lee," Oliver said with his mouth full.

I smiled, easing the tension. Finally we all started to laugh.

Spoiler

I have messed up, I apologize. IGNORE THIS POST... like, I deleted what I wrote on accident. So keep writing what you've written. I didn't want danger so I rewrote it then I noticed you guys replied to that post already so, I will not complicate things. Just continue writing and imagine what I wrote was never deleted.

Lacey Lopez


I am ridiculously lonely.

I show all the signs of it, and I' sure its more than just the pregnancy. I sit here, curled up in the fluffiest blanket I own, sipping on hot chocolate and crying over Disney movies.

I am so pitiful.

Lena hasn't called me since the party. I don't know if she knows or not, and I'm trying to tell myself that don't care. Allen's called, but I refuse to answer.

Emmett walks in during the middle of 'At Last I See The Light.' I pretend he doesn't exist, hoping that he will simply move around me. Emmett the idiot does not share the same sentiment and plops himself down besides me.

I pause the movie. "You really doesn't understand 'want to be alone, do you?' How do you have a girlfriend again?"

"I talk to her. Jane likes communication, unlike some girls I know."

"Ouch. Oh, that one hurt!"

"Lace. Sarcasm not appreciated."

I look over at my brother, noting the tiredness in his expression, and how it matches mine. "Tutoring not go well?"

"No, not that! Kristen was very nice and eager to learn, once we got past the niceties."

I've seen Kristen, and (this being a totally judgmental and hypocritical statement) I wonder just how 'nice' she was.

We both sit in silence for awhile, watching the screen. I finally gather up the courage to ask him. "Are you going to Avery's party? The one in a coupe of days?"

"Yeah. Jane's kinda of gotten to be friends with the two of them, so I figured I might as well go."

This is so pitiful. My nerdy brother has so much more of a social life than I do; than I ever have, because he has a girlfriend who actually loves him.

"I'll stay back," I offer, "but you can come late to my pity party. We've got chocolate, ice cream, and pickles dipped in nacho sauce."

Emmett makes a face. "Pregnant food?"

"Yup. The best kind to throw yourself a pity party with."

Emmett looks at me, straight on, like he does when he's trying to be serious. "Lace, tell me, honestly, if you're okay."

I want to tell him that I hurt, that I miss friends, that I want to talk to Allen but can't. I smile at him. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

Emmett Lopez

I fricking love brownies.

They wear bowties and fezzes, and they sing very catchy songs. I want to sing along with them, but my lips are glued shut. The back of my head buzzes with the sound of the bee choir. The brownies begin to dance the drunken giraffe, and I try to move my legs to get up and join them, but my legs feel heavy, as though cemented to the ground below them.

Emmett... A voice! I watch the food to see if their cracked lips are moving, but they are not. Emmett! Are you okay? The world began to shake, the brownies crumbling in the wake of a falling fog

I suddenly realize that I am dreaming, and that shoots me out of the crumbling world. My eyes open, but I can't see where I am.

My head is still buzzing with the bee choir, but I blink repeatedly to try and fix it.

"Emmett!" It's the voice again, but it is not Jane's voice. Shouldn't it be Jane's voice? I feel like it should be Jane's voice. "Oh, good, you're awake. I was worried."

I see that the speaker is a girl. A pretty girl. I try to remember her name, because I know her face, but it makes my head ache.

"What happened?" I say, but it probably sounded more like, 'Whhhvvhhcchh happienenddd?"

The girl responds appropriately. "It's okay, dear. You're a little wasted, and being knocked out doesn't exactly help." She sits on the edge of the bed, helping me sit up. She puts a glass up to my lips, and water runs down my throat. It feels very good.

The girl gets off the bed, walking around the room, humming to herself. I follow her with my eyes, and it seems to clear my vision a bit. I can't remember anything, I find. I'm at a party. I was with Jane, my girlfriend. Something happened that made Jane mad, and got me into this room... but what?

Thinking hurts, so I stop. "Thank... you... for taking care of me."

The girl turns around, and her eyes light up. "Oh, dear, not a problem." She comes and sits beside me, taking my hand into hers. "Can you remember anything?"

"Not really."

She's quiet, not saying anything.

Suddenly, she asks a question. "Do you think I'm pretty?"

I don't hesitate, because there's no need to. "Yes."

Suddenly, her legs are around me. She touches my face and, before I can say or do anything, she's kissing me. I, remembering that I like girls, am kissing her back, our tongues doing a rough dance in each others mouths. Her lips our warm, but not soft. We kiss until she pulls back.

"I like you." She takes my hands and presses them against her breasts.

I don't respond, just kiss her back. She moves her hands around my shirt, teasing it up as she still kisses me.

I wonder if she's Jane, my girlfriend.

I feel her waist, her hips, and then I remember;

no, she's not. This makes me a bad person. Jane does not have hips so large, and she is much softer, I know that. Jane is in trouble.

Reluctantly, I pull back. "Kristen." I know her name now, and it falls from my lips. "Stop."

"I like you, though. A lot."

Her legs are still on either side of me. My head clears of brownie dust for a moment. "That doesn't mean we should just.. do it."

"Why not?"

"...It's not right."

Her face falls. "Emmett..."

I kiss her again, just for the fact that it feels good, and I'm wasted. "I love her."

She gets off of me, and search the bed for my phone, finding it and numbly dialing in only five minutes. "Lace? Yeah... need your help."

Lacey is lonely, and Emmett will not remember anything.

Kristin

Too much was going on for me. Jane running off with Emmett. My heart feeling like it was tearing in half at seeing them. Avery calling Jane a slut. And now Oliver. The guy I decided was going to just stay in that bad chapter of my life. The guy I decided to have random wild sex with on the plane to my new life. To my new, clean and pristine, future. I can't kick him out. He's Lena's cousin, MY cousins best friend. I don't wanna upset anybody. But...

I quickly push through the people and run upstairs and straight into a random guest room. In there I feel my heart race as I see his face. And then... well I revert back into my old attention seeking Kristin self. I come so close to having sex with him. Had he not woken me from my trance by saying the magic words "I love her" I would have continued. This isn't me. Its not.

I can still hear the music as I slam the door, and I take a deep breath. I lean against it for a few seconds trying to get my head together and then I run into my room and close the door. I climb onto my water bed and turn to my blue and green lava lamp. I made sure to choose a color that would totally relax me when designing the room that my cousins family provided. The walls are painted in a pretty shimmery aqua, and my bed and furniture is all in various shades of blues. From sea foam to navy. I love it in here. It's relaxing, modern, and just completely me. Or...well the me i thought that I was becoming.

"K, can I come in?" I hear Avery yell over the music. I stay silent, and wait for her to invite herself in, as we usually do when the other is in a bad mood. She climbs onto my bed with me and cuddles next to me. And then she looks up at me expectantly with her large green eyes. Its funny. Despite the ample drug usage, alcohol abuse, and just all around craziness going on downstairs, shes managed to remain beautiful and sleek. Her makeup is still applied perfectly, her hair is still styled perfectly, and her white short off the shoulder, backless mini dress has yet to see a stain. I mean I still look pretty nice. My hair has only a few fly aways from its chic high ponytail, and my black knee length V neck doesn't have any stains on it either, but still. My eyes look wild, scared and confused. While hers are still determined and expectant. I sigh.

"You've changed boo bear. I've changed. We've all changed." I say quietly. Averys eyebrows furrow and she finally looks away.

"Certain situations have called for a change from me. I've changed to adapt to my life, to be happy. You've changed to create a new life for yourself K. Change is apart of our development to adulthood. I couldn't stay the sweet little goody two shoes forever, love. And you couldn't remain the same crazy, partying, whore you used to be in Europe. We change to adapt. to better ourselves. It's necessary to live." I nod. She's right.

"Just don't become mean Avery. Thats not you." She nods when I finish.

"I'll do whatever you ask K. Your like a sister to me. You know me inside out. So no, I won't turn mean." I lay my head on hers, my way of saying that I appreciate it.

"You like him still, don't you?" Avery asks. I feel my breath hitch.

"Yeah. If there's one guy i'd get into a relationship with, it'd be Emmett. He holds every trait in a guy that I would like, and could grow to love him. But I really love Jane. I know that it may be too early to tell, but just her presence sets me at ease. She's an old soul, ya know? I really like her, and her company. So unlike in the past, I won't try to steal him from her. I'll just try to find someone else." The lies and dishonesty roll off of my tongue with an ease and I finish with a sigh.I have to change the subject. Now. I look over at Avery, to see her reaction to what i'm about to ask. "Are you that insecure with your relationship with Will, that you wouldn't trust him alone with someone that i genuinely like and trust?" Avery doesn't show any physical reaction to my question. She just continues to stare blankly at my wall.

"I need Will, Kristin. He's made me a better person. He understands me more than anyone at Harmony High. Not more than you of course. Or..." She hesitates for a second, and then continues "But he's been there with me, through the highs and lows. We have history. And actual chemistry. He makes me want a better future for myself. And Jane...she's sweet. I'll admit that. And what happened back with Allen...well thats all ancient history now. But...that picture Kris. That picture of them embracing. And...the way that he looked at her. It scares me Kris." Avery burrows her face into the crevice of my shoulder. I comb my hand through her straightened hair.

"Don't worry Avey. Jane has Emmett."My voice cracks, but I continue as if it hadn't." They're madly in love I can promise you that. And Will loves you, I can see it in his eyes." I reassure her. She looks up at me with a beautiful smile.

"Really? I really do hope so K. And Tristans a good guy. He would be good for you. I'm just sorry he couldn't make it here." Avery says sadly. I shake my head with a small smile.

"Its fine. He's to...simple for me anyways." I say.

"And Oliver?" Avery asks, looking up at me. I shrug.

"If he acknowledges me, thats all good and well. Maybe we can become actual friends. And not just mile high club attendees." I say, making Avery chuckle "And if he ignores me, even better. That'll just keep that chapter of my life closed and locked." Avery nods her head in approval and then starts getting up.

"What time is it?" She asks softly, exhaustion edging her words. I look down at my versace rose gold watch.

" Twelve fourty- three." I say, remaining in bed and not making a move to get up. She nods.

"Time to start shutting this party down then. Do you want me to do it?" She asks, but I can tell that she's exhausted. I sigh and swing my legs over the bed, all the while shaking my head.

"Nope i'll handle it." I say, and walk out of the room without looking back. I walk through the still crowded party, all the way to the back of the house to the play room, where all of the expensive furniture and electronics are locked up. I unlock the door and turn off the music, after signing into my laptop. I can hear the complaints immediately and they only get louder as I begin walking back towards the living room.

"I'm gonna need you guys to get the hell out of my house!" I yell over the voices. I hear a few yells telling me that they're not going to leave until they want to and for a second I feel nervous.

"You guys fucking heard her! Get the fuck out of her house!" I hear a loud deep voice yell above everyone else's voice. And suddenly they all start milling out quickly until its just me, Avery, Will, Lena, Oliver, and an attractive hispanic guy talking to Avery.

"Thanks Micheal. These drunk partygoers get pretty crazy sometimes."Avery says, and gives the guy, Micheal, a quick tight hug. "By the way. Tell your mom I said good luck with the surgery and that i'll pray for her." The guy smiles a pearly white smile.

"She'll be glad to hear that. She's misses you, ya know." He says with a smile. Avery laughs.

"I miss her too. I haven't been over to see her in awhile, so tell her that I'll be there soon. I'll bring my cousin there too. I'm sure that she'd love to meet your ma." Avery says and waves over at me. I approach them and suddenly feel really self conscious of how I look. He looks over at me and then smiles widely, revealing deep and adorable dimples.

"Hey. I'm gonna take a wild guess here and say that you're Averys cousin." I nod and smile. He extends a large hand. "I'm Micheal. Micheal Vega. And you are?" He asks, with a sparkle in his hazel eyes.

"I'm Kristin Piest. And i'm also finding you amazingly nice to look at." I say, getting over my initial shyness and smiling coyly. And honestly, he is just nice to look at. He's muscular, and a beautiful shade of caramel. His teeth are all straight and bright white. His hair is onyx black and nice and soft looking, slightly covered by an obey snapback. He's dressed stylishly, and pretty expensively. So attractiveness wise, he gets an A-OK from me. He chuckles and looks me in the eye.

"Thats nice to hear, from some as...well flat out gorgeous as yourself." He doesn't even look me up and down. He just keeps his eyes leveled with mine, and almost looks as if he's staring into the depths of my soul.

"Thank you for telling them to leave by the way. I started getting pretty scared for a second."I say taking a step closer to him, my heart racing. He takes a step closer to me.

"No problem. Being rude to someone as beautiful as you, almost feels like a personal offense." He says, and I catch something in his eyes, but I ignore it. "It would be great to see you again though. I can already tell that i'd enjoy your company." He says with a wide smile. I smile back, and give him my number, to which he quickly types into his phone.

"I'll call you tomorrow. In the morning. For breakfast if your up for it." He says as I walk him to the front door. I nod excitedly.

"I'd love to. It was so nice meeting you Micheal." I say opening the door for him. He takes my hand in his and quickly kisses it.

"The pleasure was all mine Kristin." He says and walks over to an expensive looking black mustang. I close the door with a self satisfied smile. That should keep my mind off of Emmett. I turn to see Avery looking at me with a cheshire cat like smile.

Avery

"Are you sure that you don't want me to spend the night?" Will asks, breaking my eye contact with Kristin by standing right in front of me. I shake my head and kiss him on the cheek.

"No thanks. Get home now. It's late. I love you." I say and watch as he exits, and Lena and a far gone halfway passed out Oliver follow.

"Whats with the look?" My cousin asks me.

"You just made a deal with the devil." Kristin looks at me with a confused expression.

"Micheal?" She asks. I nod. She raises a blonde eyebrow and crosses her arms waiting for me to explain.

"He's one of the most sadistic, manipulating, sneaky guys I know. And he's a gang leader. Of the biggest gang in this state." Kristin rolls her eyes.

"Thats it? He sounds like an adventure. And he has a sweet side, which I can tell was genuine when we interacted." I nod.

"He's only like that to a few people. His mother, sister, my father, mother, and me. And now you." She nods and smiles.

"How old is he again?" She asks.

"Nineteen. He goes to college. But he makes bunches of money from his...well "hobby"." I say, leaning against the wall.

"Thats amazing. And its the largest one in this state? Wow..."She says, trailing off.

"We're old friends. From church when I was younger. Before his mom got...sick-" Kristin stops me by putting up a hand.

"I want him to tell me the rest. I can tell thats probably all of his private business so let him open up to me with it." I nod at her reasoning. And then I begin going upstairs.

"Have a nice sleep boo bear." I say, watching her climb up the stairs. Suddenly the doorbell rings and I go to answer it to find Lacey.

"Hey, my brother is passed out in one of your gues-" She stops when something catches her eyes behind me, and I turn to find Emmett coming down the stairs. She rushes over to him and props an arm of his over her shoulder.

"Here, let me help." I say, and grab his other arm. I help him into the taxi cab.

"Um yeah. Sorry about that. Have a good night." She says quickly and then climbs into the cab next to him. I sigh as I walk back into my house. Well, that was weird. I hear a sound like crying as I get upstairs.

"Kris, is that you?" I call out.

"Leave me alone Avery. We can talk tomorrow." I know when to leave her alone, and this sounds like one of those times. I sigh and walk into my bedroom, and make sure to lock the door.

"You're back." A deep voice says from under my silk duvet. I keep the lights off and get undressed.

"Yeah. I'll be in, in a sec." I walk into the bathroom and put on my silky night gown and then i go back out and climb into the bed.

"Come and cuddle me." I say quietly. He scooches to me and embraces me in his comforting strong arms. I nuzzle into him.

"I love you Avery." Leo says quietly. I shush him.

"Don't say that Lee Lee. You're my friend. And thats all. All your doing right now is offering me some friendly comfort. And i'm giving you a place to stay until you find your own. Okay?" He nods. But even with all of my strong words thats all they are in the end, just words. They don't stop the pounding in my heart, until I drift off into a dreamless sleep.

Jane Wills

I'm okay.

I know I'm okay because I am not hurt. I am alive. I am fully clothed. Opening my eyes, I see a slanted roof. I am inside a car. A nice car actually. The seats are comfortable and covered in fabric, not leather. The sun is showing through the windows as I try to sit up. It's easy, no pain. So, I sit up and look around.

Why am I in a car.

Looking out the windows, I don't see anybody...

"You're up," someone opens the door and says this.

And this someone is someone I find familiar. Same blue eyes, styled hair. British accent.

"Oliver is the name, and you can say thank you when I drive you home." he added, turning on the car.

I can barely place my thoughts clearly.


Oliver Hemingway

The hot babe from the plane, Kristin, was at the party. Excellent. Which means I live nearby. Which means, I could hopefully see her again. She's so sexy.

To the business at hand. I have found the girl, beat up the guy. I should get money for this.

"Pretty doll, where do you live?" I asked, looking at the rear view mirror.

"Um, you could take me to my boyfriends... I'll pull up the address on my phone." she said, her voice was weak.

"You had a phone and couldn't call for help?" I asked.

"You found my phone, which I thanked you for. I didn't have it."

"Right, right. Pull up the address."

It took her a while, so I turned on the radio and started to drive out of the park parking lot. We were near where the party was at and I had a massive hangover. Hangover wasn't even the right word for this kind of pain. Kill-me-pain-in-the-head is what it should be called.

"Here it is," she handed me the phone from the back.

I took it, looking at it.

"Oh, near Lena's, great." I smiled.

"You're Lena's cousin, right?" she asked.

"Yeah, first-cousins actually. She hates it, I know it."

"No she doesn't..."

I turned out of the parking lot and back onto the main road as I sipped my coffee. I handed one of the cups to the back so she could take it. She took it out of my hand, I felt it. I placed both hands back on the wheel and kept driving.

"Don't bullshit, she does. Does she ever talk about me? No, didn't think so." I said.

"Well, she never mentioned you, doesn't mean she hates you! She just, never thought of it." Jane tried.

"Right, I know. I'm pulling your leg."

The radio started to play some Coldplay so I turned it up.

***

"I'll check you later, call me whenever Jane Wills," I waved from the car.

She smiled, her teeth so white.

"Alright Oliver Hemingway. And... thank you, so much." she ran into her boyfriends' house.

William Franco

I rang. I rang about five times. She didn't answer. I don't know. I was worried. Why was I worried? I never cared. But, somehow, I always remembered. Everything she did. It was always in my memory. So odd.

"Will, who have you been calling?" Avery asked as she ate her morning cereal.

Looking over at her, I saw her confused face. It is odd. I had been on this phone all morning long. I couldn't blame myself, I was scared. That bastard was always there to hurt her no matter freaking what.

"I..." I said, looking everywhere but at her. "I've been calling Jane,"

She took a moment to look at me. Then, she put her spoon back in her bowl and stood up with it, placing the utensils into the sink. After that, she walked out back upstairs, giving me the cold shoulder. I swallowed hard and looked at my iPhone again. No missed calls. No texts. I decided to follow Avery.

"Ave," I said, walking up the stairs.

A door slammed from above and I cringed. Shit. I have to ruin everything, don't I.

"Avery," I tried again, getting to the landing.

I could hear her shuffling in her room for something. I took it slowly, walking up to the door. Once I reached it, I went to grab the knob. Before I could, the door opened to a furious Avery. She stared at me for a moment, then pulled something from behind her back.

"This is the gift Allen gave me when we got serious in our relationship." she said, showing me the item. It was a small red box. She opened it and showed what was inside, a pin. It was in the shape of a tiger's head, all gold colored.

"He said it represented me and our love. How strong it was and how strong I was." She took a deep breath than shut the box.

Lifting her head up, she looked at me for another quick second, then she walked back into her room. Just a minute later, she came back with a journal of some sort. Than, she opened it up and flipped through it, showing me that it is written in. There are some drawings and even pictures stashed in it.

"This is the journal I kept during your time at the hospital."

I swallowed hard, looking at the journal. There were dates and writings. I even saw the pages were tear stained.

"Here, look at it." She handed it to me. I took it with a delicate touch.

I flipped through the pages and felt my heard racing. Each day of that month was in here. The details of my health was written. When I 'woke' up every once in a while, like my eyes opened or something but I wasn't awake yet. A few pictures of me, laying there. Of Lena and Chris there. Of Avery, smiling, trying to brace her sadness and regaining hope.

"If you wanna like someone else, go ahead. But know that I always loved you. I always love you Will. I'm there. And you'll never have anyone like me."

"Oh Ave," I sighed, looking at her. I held the journal still. "I love you so much."

She shook her head, taking the journal from my hands. I felt an emptiness in myself once she did.

"Than show me. Don't flaunt over Jane. She has someone to protect her already."

"I was just scared. She's my friend."

"I know Will,"

A pause passed through us.

"Why did you hug her?" she asked.

"What?"

She lifted her gaze at me and then stopped at my eyes. It took a few minutes for her to process her thoughts. I waited as she leaned against the door frame.

"Will, I got a picture... lemme show you." Ave looked through her pockets and pulled out her phone. She then looked through it and showed me the picture. It was of Jane and I hugging so amorously. She turned the phone back toward her and slipped it back into her pocket.

"That was..."

"Ave! I'm home!" Kristin yelled from downstairs.

We both turned toward the stairs and saw her wave at us. We waved back and then went back into her room. She shut the door behind us and I sat on her bed. So many memories on this bed. We had our first kiss on this bed.

"Ave," I took a breath in. "I had a breakdown that day. And she was there. Jane was there."

Avery walked up to me, sitting down on the bed next to me. The tension was sort of off, and that's understandable.

"She heard me on the phone with the nurse who helped my doctor. I was horrified because I wanted to know when this would all end. When would I finally be normal again. You know?" I looked at her for a brief moment. "You wouldn't know," I whispered, feeling my heart break.

"No one would know. I know no one who would know my situation and tell me what's happening."

She ran her hand down and up my back, trying to calm me down I guess. I felt so lost. So stressed.

"She was there, so she tried to comfort me. And you know what sucks? Every time I see her, I remember my weakness. Every time I freaking see her, I feel lost again because she reminds me of that day. So, I am not happy when I see her. I hate seeing her. I hate her! She always thinks that she knows a secret part of me. I could see it in her eyes. She thinks she has some weird connection with me which is not true!" I took a breath. "Ave. She feels like she needs to feel sorry for me for no reason, and that makes me feel so weak and useless. I don't like her around me."

Avery pulled me closer so she could hug me. Her arms embraced me, and I pulled my arms around her. It was warm. Comfy. It was right. I felt a huge relief inside of me as I shut my eyes and lived in the moment. Then, I heard a shuffle from the door. We both heard it. I stood up and walked toward it, opening the door slightly. I saw Jane walk into Kristin's room. No. She heard me.

Kristin

"So tell me about yourself." Micheal says, leaning back in his seat with a smirk. I smile and think for a second, looking outside at the busy streets of the city. Micheal drove all the way to the city with a great reservation to the Sky Room. I always love being in tall buildings. The view is great here. I can see all the way over to New Jersey from it.

"I'm needy. Pretty manipulating. A huge flirt. A bit of a sadist at times. I have a stomach the size of a whale, but I only enjoy high quality food. I have bunches of insecurities, and tend to get jealous on a regular basis. And i'm a huge cuddler. If you're bad at cuddling, you might as well take me home now." I say, and finish by meeting him in the eyes. His smile seems to have grown 10x its normal size as I was speaking, and now he's grinning like a maniac.

"I really like you Kristin." He says, taking my hand, his smile growing smaller and cuter. I raise an eyebrow at him.

"You just met me yesterday dude. And not only that but you've got a gang to worry about." He told me all about it, The Redskins, yesterday. I wasn't intimidated by it. Just curious and quite fascinated. I had yet to date a gang member. And the leader of one at that. And I knew that my playing slightly hard to get would work its charm. He rolls his wide hazel eyes at me.

"Yes Kristin, i'm in a gang. Shit, i'm the leader of it. I'm also taking a double major in NYU. I'm also a serious member of a nonprofit charity. And I also work part time as a chef in my sisters restaurant over here.Not to mention that I still make sure to go to church regularly. and take care of my mother. I'm good at time management. Great at it actually. Having a beautiful girlfriend to come home to wouldn't mess me up at all." He rolls his eyes once more for emphasis. I smile at him. He's good. That definitely shut me up. I lean over the glass table and kiss him on the cheek.

"Mmkay. THen I guess i'll be your girlfriend. But just know that you're a distraction for the time being. I'm really, really into this guy I can't have so you'll be serving as a distraction." I expect him to get mad. To yell at me or calmly say that he just doesn't want that. Instead he just shrugs his broad shoulders and smiles.

"A mans gotta take what he can get."He says, getting up and walking behind me to help me put on my coat. I turn around and smile at him.

"So where are we off to now." He says as he opens up the door of his car for me. Once we're all settled in I answer him.

"To pick up my friend Jane." I say with a smile. Again I expect him to decline or say something that I wouldn't like. Instead he stays silent and hands me his GPS. Once we're outside of her home I run up the front steps and knock like a hundred times on her door. When i'm nearing three hundred she answers the door in a cute little bunny robe, bunny slippers and red hungover eyes.

"Kristin...what are you doing here?" She asks, confused.

"Me and my new boyfriend are here to pick you up." I say with a bright smile and proceed to dragging her out. She begins to wiggle out of my grip, complaining as to how its too cold, and she was sleeping, and she can't come outside like this. Suddenly Micheal is lifting her from her legs and carrying her to his car as she yells out complaints and beats his back. I smile to myself. I really picked a jewel. Once we're all settled in Jane glares at me from the backseat.

"Kristin...what the fuck?" She sounds pretty annoyed. I smile at her from the rearview.

"We're gonna have a slumber party silly!" I say excitedly. She rolls her eyes.

"But did he have to pick me up?!" She yells. I roll my eyes.

"I'm sorry about that. Really I am. But Kristin has been so looking forward to this slumber party since breakfast so..." He trails off and continues driving. "Anyway, Kristin has told me that you're a reader. So in that case who would you favor more, Geoffrey Chaucer or Dante?" He asks. Jane scoffs.

"You can hardly compare them. They're writing styles are both so different, and both wrote about completely different things. Although, I would prefer Chaucer. I loved the variety in which he wrote the stories of all of the people on the journey with him. And he's a worker. I like that." After that I listen dully to them debating about a various amount of Authors and books and stories and essays, while I think about Emmett. In school tomorrow will he approach me about yesterday? Oh no what if he tells Jane? He could pin it all on me. Shit I Pin it all on me. He was intoxicated and I took advantage of him. My close friends boyfriend. My God what type of fucked up individual does that. I really need to get back to church so that I can go to confession.

"Well ladies, it was great spending time with you. Kristin i'll talk to you later. Jane, great debate. Hopefully we can go further later." We both get out of the car and begin walking up Avery's long winding driveway.

"Nice boyfriend you've got there." All I do is nod, and keep on a smile.

Jane Wills

Her boyfriend Michael... not bad at all. He's nice, smart, and a good debater. I could literally debate with him all day. I haven't done that in the longest while. Hopefully, I'll see him again.

"So, who else is coming to this slumber?" I asked, sitting on her bed.

Kristin was at her desk, playing with her computer. Actually, she typing something up. I wouldn't know. She's probably on Facebook.

"Ave, Lena, you, me, Lacey... all the girls." she turned and smiled at me.

Her smile always made me happy. Cause it let me believe I had an actual friend.

"You sure Lacey will be alright?"

"Called her, she's good. Though she mentioned Emmett was still... sick."

I took a breath in and smiled. "Kristin, he's still yeah... hungover... after drugs effect. I came from his house right when you came to my place. I was just headed back to bed, haha."

She turned her chair so she could face me and gave me a great smile. I shifted on the bed to get more comfortable by sitting criss-cross-applesauce.

"At least he was taken care of." She said.

"Yeah, cause I'm the best care taker." I replied sarcastically.

We giggled a bit then went back to what we were doing. I was staring at the TV as she was doing something on her laptop.

"How did you and Emmett meet?"

My heart stopped when she asked. It's a normal question. It's gotta be. But, I felt so... weird about answering it. It's Emmett and ours personal lives. And, I didn't know if I was ready to express it. We are friends, I do trust her, maybe it is time. We've been through so much, Emmett and I.

And so, I told the story. The story of our lives.

Oliver Hemingway

I had the chance to take her. She was right there. I had her under my fingertips. It's just... every time I see her, she makes me crazy. She reminds me of the time in the plane. And God, I needed her. It's like I knew she was my future.

Like I was going to fight for it. If she wanted me, she would try.

"Oli, do you think think Chris will like this?" Lena asked me.

Turning my head, I saw her wearing a long dress that was brown, a coffee brown, the dress hit the floor. It was a strapless dress. She had her hair down in soft waves. I could say, she looked like a girl that came out from California, not Connecticut. My cousin will impress this guy. He's lucky to have her. If anyone hurt her, trust me, I'd hurt them twice as badly.

"You look bloody stunning." I smiled, checking her out jokingly.

"Ew Oli, don't do that." she cracked a laugh.

I turned back to my computer and scrolled through Facebook. I heard her walking toward me, her heels clicking against the hardwood. She did the smart thing and wore small heels, just so she wouldn't trip over herself. I felt her sit next to me, the mattress jumping a bit once she sat down.

"Who are you looking for?" she asked, looking over at my screen.

Looking at her for a quick second, I looked back at the laptop.

"Uh, just this girl..."

"Oh my God," she took a breath in. "It's the one night stand from the plane, isn't it."

I pulled my hands from the keyboard and felt my heart race. I let my head hang down, trying to push away my thoughts.

"Yeah,"

"I knew it. That look in your eyes when you told me about her! You fell in love with her." Lena said with a jump in her voice.

I looked over at her and then turned back at the screen, scrolling through the faces of Facebook users. No face looked familiar. Some of the girls were amazingly attractive, so I added them, planning to message them later.

She wrapped her hand around mine, making me stop. I looked over and felt her squeeze it.

"I know how it feels, to be in love." I followed my eyes to hers, listening to her. "Chris and I, we're for forever. I love him and he loves me, we got so lucky to find each other Oli. And you'll find someone too."

"I'm not in love," I huffed, pulling my hand away a little to roughly.

She stood silent. And then, she stood up, walking over to the guest room door to leave. Then, the clicking stopped. I looked up and saw her staring at me.

"Who is she?"

I took a deep breath.

"Her name is Kristin... that's all I remember."

A look passed her eyes as she let me continue.

"I saw her at the party last night. It's not going to work anyway..."

"Kristin Piest," she said.


William Franco

"Jane, can I talk to you?" I asked, following after her.

She went outside to grab something from the car. She said she left something there. I felt like this is the only way to talk to her alone. So, this was the only time I could apologize. To figure out what was really happening.

Right when I spoke, she stopped in her tracks. I had caught her in a moment. She came back from her lost-in-the-moment and clicked the button on the keys to open the car. She walked up to it, opening the door. I walked up to her, bracing the cold without anything warm on, but a hoodie. Jane leaned into the car, searching for the item.

"Jane," I sighed, shivering from the cold.

Pulling back out of the car, she slammed the door and locked the car. Our eyes met for a second, then she pushed passed me, not even bothering to wait for me.

"Come on Jane! I wanna talk!" I followed after her.

I heard her huff under her breath. But she kept on walking forward, ignoring me. I picked up my pace, running up to her side. I took her arm in my hand, and pulled her lightly so she could face me. When I got her to look at me, I saw it. The tears that were brimming her eyes and the quivering bottom lip. She was cursing at herself, I could see those thoughts running through her head. Then I looked down and saw what was in her hand, a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. I looked back up at her face. My grip loosened and she managed to pull away, walking back toward the house. Shaking my head, I ran back up to her.

"Don't," She hissed.

I stopped and watched her stop in her place. Then, when I felt it was right, just a few seconds, I walked up to her. I stood in front of her. She couldn't even look at me.

"Jeez Jane," I huffed out. "I..." she didn't let me finish.

"You're sorry, I know." she hissed breathlessly.

Her fingers quivered as she fiddled with the cigarette box. I watched her pull out one of them, flicking the lighter on and letting the cigarette set on her bottom lip as she blew.
We stood silent again, just us and the freezing cold. I shook and she shook but we stood there. She huffed the smoke and it bothered me like crazy. She shouldn't smoke. She's too beautiful to smoke.

"Say something." I said.

"Say what Will," she managed to look at me for a single moment, then looked away at the horizon to my right, the sun was setting.

"I don't know Will." she breathed in the smoke. "I guess I'm too nice. I get used. My problem."

I waited for a little before I said something, hoping that the tension would fade. It certainly didn't.

"It's fucking cold Will, can we go inside?"

"You're smoking. You aren't going to smoke in the house." I replied.

"Why do you care?"

"I don't."

Another moment of silence. I didn't know what to do. Jane was a specific person. She had a weird personality.

"I didn't mean it." I tried. "I just... when I said that, it sounded fake. Never mind... Jane, I said that because I've been feeling so trapped with you. You make me feel weak because you look at me like I'm some kind of sick person! You make me feel like there's something wrong with me!" I said honestly, trying to let my temper settle down.

She still smoked, not even daring to glance at me. I saw her feet shuffle as we both shook from the cold. I swear, it could've been about twenty degrees.

"You remind me of that. So, can you please stop looking at me like that? I wanna feel like I will be okay... not like I'm crazy."

"That's not my problem Will," she threw the butt on the driveway and crushed it with the heel of her Converse, or you could call them sand shoes.

"It is your problem. You are part of it." I said.

"I wouldn't believe so, you're the one who's crazy, not me." she managed to push passed me again, headed down the walk to the porch.

I shook my head and followed her again.

"It's too cold Will, I'm going inside! And please do not talk to me!" She said with a sort of yell.

Instead of letting this go, I pulled her again, this time a little more roughly. I didn't hurt her. I wouldn't hurt her. She had eyes filled with shock. It was a quick pull that landed her so close to me. Then I knew. The tension, it centered around us, I couldn't breathe.

Knowing what I wanted was a bad thing. I never wanted this until...

She shook her head, lowering her head and trying to pull away. I kept a tight grip on her.

"That's sort of abusive, you know," Jane said.

"No it's not Jane. I just wanna talk."

"Then you don't grip me like that."

"Jane," I sighed. "It's not even that hard."

"Are we going to ignore this?" she asked, her eyes meeting mine.

I swallowed hard, letting her hand go. I didn't realize until now that I was holding her hand. It was sweaty, mine was. My heart was racing like crazy. I didn't want to, but I let my eyes fall to her lips. They looked so soft and so inviting.

"We can't do this." she said quickly. "Not in front of them. Not here. Not ever."

Without hesitation, I slipped my hand behind her neck and let it roam around, touching her ever so softly. Her eyes went from mine to the rest of me, checking me out. Touching her felt so electric. I ran my fingers down her cheeks then to her lips, touching them so lightly, I barely felt them. I felt her shake under my touch.

"This is so wrong," I said under my breathe.

She nodded, stepping closer to me. Her body pressed against mine, sending so much electric through my body, I couldn't take it anymore. I leaned into her, letting my lips crash into hers. And it felt so much better than I thought it ever would.

Spoiler

SUCH A PLOT TWIST

Lacey Lopez

Emmett had never done anything wrong in his life.

My brother was as literal definition of 'perf'. There have been a few exceptions of course, as there always is, but for the most part, it was Emmett; best combination ever to come out of a Native American Hispanic ever.

I feel almost bad how must I'm enjoying this whole "Emmett did something bad' routine.

"Are vee almost hommee, Lace?"

Right. Almost.

"Yes, brother, dear. Then you can pass out on your bed."

"That sounds niccee."

"Yes. Very nice."

I pull our family's spare car into the driveway, making liberal use of our mirrors, when I spot it. My heart begins shaking in my rib cage, unsure if it wants to jump into my throat or sink into my feet. It's his car, the shade, the shape, the model. He's here to see me.

I look at my brother, trying to shade my eyes from the pitiful shape he's in, as it would do no good for my confidence. "Can you get into the house by yourself?"

"Of course!" I can see, through the veil of my hair, the indignant look on my trashed brother's face. At least he's still Emmett, I suppose.

I suppress a smile. "Good." He climbs from the car and, despite myself, I trace on a bit of lip gloss before climbing out, dragging myself out of my car and facing his.

It doesn't move. I sort of hope it does, and I sort of hope it doesn't. My heart is still doing that weird thing, turning my ribcage into a battered prison of emotions.

I walk towards it, and the driver rolls down the window. I glimpse inside, and my soul decidedly flips backwards. The guy has startlingly blue eyes; not brown ones.

It's not Hakan. Just some guy in a car just like his.

I still want to know what he's doing here, however, with a cocky grin and an elbow leaning out the window to look at me. "What are you doing right next to my house at midnight?" The first thing I think pours out my mouth.

"Dropping off a friend to her boyfriend's house," he says, his accent British and certainly out of place," presuming it's also yours?"

Ah. One of Jane's odd mixture of friends. I appreciate his care of her, and smile at so. "Yeah. Lacey Lopez, at your service." Despite myself, I curtsey. "Your majesty."

He grins at me from out the car window. "Clever, sweets." Despite myself, I find his British accent attractive, despite him being the type of abs over high cheekbones. "I'm Oliver Hemingway."

I can't see him very well through the window, but I smile at him nevertheless. I like Jane, and make an effort for anyone whose a friend of hers- a recent friend, not an idiot from her old life- can't be half bad. "Sorry to bother you, sir. Thanks for bringing Jane here. It really batters to both my brother and I."

"No problem." He looks me up and down. "See you around?"

I'm feeling a tad sassy, the way I was with Hakan. "If I can be spared the time."

I hear his laugh through the darkness.

___________________

I have friends!

I haven't been to a slumber party in awhile, and I miss the girlishness and silliness; the pure innocence of them, even if they aren't... you know, virgins.

I was so surprised when Jane called me up to invite me. I find the house easy enough, and I knock on the door, nervous-like.

Kristin answers the door for me, smiling widely. It's a mostly genuine smile, and it is enough to melt the rude things thought about her the other day.

"Hey, love! You look wonderful! Come on in!"

I totally don't look wonderful, but I do come in. I'm sure Kristen just likes my Hunger Games-esque braid. I like the look, as it brings out the darker tones of my skin.

I wave to Jane, who smiles at me.

Avery is heard humming from the kitchen.

I take a deep breathe. Here we go...

Soon happy Thanksgiving guys! Have fun stuffing your faces and all of that! I was think that we could do a Thanksgiving post but that wouldn't fit with the story :/ but we should do some type of event for our little HH characters soon! But yeah, have a great Turkey Day!

Jane Wills

"Uh, but I really wanted to see Legally Blonde!" Kristin complained with a laugh.

"Doesn't matter now. We have The Hunger Games already." Avery replied.

It was movie time in this whole slumber party thing. The first thing we did was make some food, well, hep Avery make some food. Next, we played some random games. And finally, we got ready for sleep by watching some movies. We already watched Grease, and I thought it was a hit. Ave said that we'd watch one more movie. We'll see about that.

"Okay, okay... it's just I've already seen it. How about all of you? Did everyone see The Hunger Games already?" Kristin asked.

I was sitting next to her, so all I had to do was nod. She saw me, then looked over the rest of the room.

"Yeah, I saw it with Chris," Lena said.

"Saw it," Lacey added.

"Yeah, but we all saw Grease too." Avery protested.

"How about we watch The Parent Trap!" Lacey said.

"Who hasn't seen that?" Avery asked sarcastically.

I shifted in my spot and pulled out my phone from my pocket, checking to see if I got any new texts or calls. Just one from Emmett saying Have Fun. The time was already ten at night.

"Maybe Ave should just choose a random movie and surprise us!" I suggested.

Everyone looked ta me for a moment then I caught Avery smile.

"Great idea, I'm on it." Avery said.

***

She decided to throw us into Titanic. It was one of those classic movies that everyone knew and loved. So I thought. I was the only one awake and we were just half way through the movie.

I managed to go to the bathroom a few times just to try to fall asleep. If I get myself moving, then I'd get tired. It didn't work. So, when I got back to the room, I turned off the TV and went to my sleeping bag on the floor next to Lacey. Kristin had joined Ave in her bed. Yes, she had her own room, but we had the slumber party in here so... yeah.

Finally, after a few minutes, I had managed to fall asleep.


Oliver Hemingway

Oh my. I just remember! That girl. Long black hair, nice tan skin. Man. She was something. She was the one I had hit on the other night, once I dropped off Jane of course. Maybe if I called Jane or something, I could hang out with her. That girl I mean, not Jane.

"Hey, maybe instead of browsing the world wide web, you could, I don't know, answer some calls? You are the secretary for a reason." a co-worker of mine, Paige Lumbert said. He was an older man, hitting his sixties. He is not the boss, but he sure feels like one.

I rolled my eyes, spinning in my chair to face him. The crow's feet by his eyes were getting worse and the wrinkles were still coming. He looked older for his age. Even his shiny green eyes still looked like they were old and worn out.

"I took care of everything, sir." I smiled.

All he did is huff, and turn back around, heading to his tiny office. I went back to my computer and logged onto Facebook. I looked at Jane's profile and searched for... the girl. Looking for her wasn't going to be easy, especially since I didn't know her name. I'm the type of guy who wants to find a girl to have fun with, she's definitely that type. No strings attached, hot as hell. Enough for me. I didn't need love yet. Even though. Never mind.

"Shoot," I huffed under my breath as I searched.

They seemed close, so maybe she posted something on her wall. A chat box bleeped at the bottom of my screen, so I clicked it. It was Jane Wills.

Hey

Hmm, I could just ask her now. Why not.

Hey Jane, how are you?

I'm alright, at a slumber thing... going home soon. What's up with you?

Working actually. I have an hour left.

I can see you are working so very hard.

I smiled as I replied with an lol, I know!

Then a few minutes passed with no reply. Either it got to boring, or she got busy. Whatever, I went back to my job at hard, printing out some back statements for a few people in the office. The printer buzzed to life as papers started spitting out of it in such elegance, I was surprised. I guess they finally fixed that thing. It's been broken for a while, and usually gave us papers that had half a print out on it. Terrible. So, I was happily surprised to see that it was working just fine.

I heard the Facebook bleep so I faced the computer again and saw Jane had replied. I clicked the box and read.

Sorry I didn't respond, I was busy. Hey, do you know Kristin Piest?

That's a really odd question.

Yeah why

She was typing for a while, so I turned back to the printer and pulled out all the papers that I printed. There were about ten sheets, so, I stacked them up and placed them into a fresh new folder with the name Stewart Humphrey on it. These were his statements so, now we all knew to not touch the folder.

The message had appeared on the screen, so I read it.

Nothing. She's at the slumber party with me, and saw I was messaging you. She had such a weird reaction. That's all.

She remembered me. The sexy German from the plane freaking remembered me.

Oh, that's weird. Doesn't matter anyway. Can you tell me the name of your boyfriend's sister?

Why do you need to know?

Thought she was hot when I saw her the time I dropped you off.

And

I wanna see her again, can you take care of that?

Something happened in which, she didn't respond again. Maybe she was calling her. Or something like that.

Me go out with you?

What.

No, Jane. Not you...

I know! It's not Jane! It's Lacey!

THAT'S HER NAME. I knew I had it at the tip of my tongue!

lol

So ,you're Lacey, right? You're being honest?

Yes, yes, it's me. Swear to God.

Wanna see me again?

I waited for her to respond


William Franco

"Aye, Jane! Stop smoking and get in the house!" Kristin yelled from the window upstairs.

All I'm happy about is that she didn't see us kiss. She managed to get the the window once we pulled apart.

"And Will, you shouldn't be smokin'!" she added.

I smiled up at her and replied, "Don't plan on it!"

She nodded, pulling her head back inside and leaving us alone. Now, I didn't feel cold at all, which was weird because it was freezing. I felt so hot, and it was because. Of. I couldn't even think it.

Jane looked at me for a straight two minutes before turning around and heading back inside. I didn't stop her. I didn't follow her. I didn't try to catch up to her. I just watched her leave and go.

And she left her cigarettes on the ground. So, I picked them up and put them in my pocket. I had a lighter in the car.

***

"So, tell me exactly what happened." I said to Chris's mother.

"He told me he wanted to go find himself. Without anyone."

There were tears stains n her cheeks as she sniffled. I don't blame her. She called me the very next day, asking if Chris was at my house. He sure as hell wasn't. Then she called Lena, and she was with Avery. No one had seen him for a week. And I was getting worried.

"He was a good boy, a good kid. He couldn't have just left." she took a napkin and started to blow her nose for the... somethingth time.

Once she finished, I sighed and looked at the wall clock. Eleven AM. I had skipped school. Jeez, I had to find him.

"Did he say anything about where he was going?" she asked me with a cracked voice.

"No..." I replied.

Then her phone started to ring. She looked at the caller ID and showed it, some random set of numbers.

"It may be Chris at some telephone booth! Answer it." I said.

She lifted the phone to her ear and spoke.

"Hello?"

Then, I saw the happiness in her eyes and the smile forming on her face. Either it was someone that knew where he was. Or it was him. She took a napkin and blotted her eyes carefully. I sat patiently.

"Oh my dear boy! I was so worried about you!" she said. It was Chris. "Do you know what you have done? William was frightened and so was Lena. Baby, are you okay? DO you eat? Do you sleep somewhere other than in a cardboard box?"

I let myself relax and smile. He was safe.

"Chris. Come home."

Then a long pause came after that, and I was worried he's telling her he wouldn't. What even happened? What made him leave? She then shifted in her seat and handed me the phone. I took a deep breath and spoke.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey," hearing him, to me, was a miracle.

"What happened to you?"

He started to laugh. I heard some faint music in the background, probably Coldplay. He liked that band.

"I'm sorry Will," he said, all of a sudden so serious. "I'm... I'm not coming back."