"What are you doing here?" Lulu Punchalower demanded, narrowing her eyes at the boy in front of her. "Can't you see I'm busy? Look, I know we don't live too far from each other, but that doesn't mean you can show up at my door at nearly twelve in the morning!" One second she was happily making fun of some stupid movie, and the next thing she knew some bumbling idiot continuously pressed the doorbell as if it would suddenly make Twinkies rain down from the sky.

"But, Lulu!" Theo Bartholomew whined, stomping one foot like a five-year-old. "You said I could spend the night today!"

"I was kidding!" she cried exasperatedly, throwing her hands up in defense. She peaked at her driveway, noticing no other cars except her mother's and father's. "How did you get here?" the strawberry blonde asked in confusion.

The young man with glasses shuffled his foot back and forth. "I used all my savings to pay for a taxi just to get here," he said quietly, looking like a lost, abandoned puppy. "I missed you, Lulu."

"Yeah, whatever, you can sleep on the door mat tonight, if you want," was all she replied before slamming the door on his face. Theo's eyes grew sad, and he squatted down to get comfortable on the prickly mat under him.

Inside the Punchalower home, the pajama-clad girl turned to walk away from the door. After a few steps, she froze and sighed. "Stupid guilt and all its stupidness," she muttered before throwing the door open once again. "Get in. Now," Lulu commanded, using her other hand to point directly inside the house. Theo immediately looked up and crawled inside hurriedly before she shut and locked the front door.

"Oh, thank you, sweet Lulu," he breathed out, collapsing on the shiny, waxed floor. "For a minute, I thought I was going to die out there. Like literally die. Don't you guys have bears around here some-?"

"Look, just shut your face, alright?" she interrupted, throwing him a pillow and the blanket she had been using. Lulu paused the movie she had been commentating on and turned to face the now-standing Theo. "Alright, let's get a few things clear. You are sleeping on the couch tonight. You are not to go anywhere else in this house or else I will personally see that you aren't fed in the morning."

"But what if I have to take a pee?" he squeaked out.

"If your bottom or any other of your man parts touches my toilet, I keep you locked in my basement," Lulu threatened, arms crossed meaning business.

"Right," he murmured, making a mental note not to eat or drink anything for the night. "Ooh, what are you watching there, Lu?" he asked, looking at the paused screen of endless evergreen trees.

"Don't call me that," the freckle-faced girl snapped. "And it's nothing. It's just some vampire movie that my mother got me for Christmas."

At this, Theo's head turned to face Lulu once more, looking interested. "This movie just doesn't so happen to be…Twilight, does it?"

The girl rolled her eyes. "Why do you ask, Theo?"

"Because," he started softly. "It's….THE BEST MOVIE IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD! MOVE!" The boy gently shoved Lulu back on the couch and snatched the remote, pressing play. "Finally…I can watch without being made fun of."

The fifteen-year-old gave him an incredulous look, wondering if he had forgotten she was here. She shook her head and muttered, "Whatever." Lulu reached over the arm of the couch to get her red laptop, deciding she'd rather check something like Facebook then watch some fairy princess sparkly in the sunlight.

"Is that supposed to be a…duck face?" she murmured, squinting her eyes as if she couldn't trust her own sight. How long was she gone from this place? She had made her account two years ago. Last time she checked it was...two years ago. "Alright, everyone's asking for a TBH….The hell is a TBH?"

"To be honest, Lulu. Duh," Theo replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, not looking away from the television screen.

Lulu lifted her head, staring at the wall ahead of her. "I have just witnessed the largest gathering of idiots I have ever seen in my entire life. Ever." As she scrolled down, one picture caught her eye. It was of Garrison, the happy chap from Miami or Minnesota or whatever.

"Theo, pause the movie," she spoke with deadly calmness in her voice.

"But I'm watching-!" he began to protest.

"NOW!" she screeched, loud enough to wake her parents and younger brother; prompting Theodore to stop the movie. "Come here…and take a look at this."

"And?" he questioned with a raised eyebrow. "I just see Garrison, and—Oh, mother of cheese, someone's not going to be happy about this…"

"What do we do?" Lulu asked in a quiet voice, turning to look at him.

"Call her?" he suggested.

"Nah, not now…Not yet, at least. We'll give it a bit more time," Lulu mused out loud. "Don't want to jump to conclusions…"

"What do we do then?"

The strawberry blonde looked thoughtful for a moment. What should they do?

"Does she have a Facebook yet?"

"No, parents are still firm on the matter," he answered.

"Good…Hey, Theo?"

"Yes, ma'am?"

"How good are you at counting money?"

"Well, one year in second grade I counted—"

"Yeah, tell me that story later," Lulu said with a slight smirk. "You are going to count my money in the morning, got that?"

"Something about your face makes me think I'm going to regret this…but, hey, what the heck? I'll do it."