Ashley felt cold with the knowledge that Craig was cheating. Manny felt like someone was squeezing her heart, stopping the beating and the blood flow and leaving her dead.

In the hallway after the show, Craig and her alone. He looked so cute and so sweet in that tee shirt with the plaid shirt over it. His hair long and curly, longer than it was last year when she met him, when he first came to Degrassi.

"Manny," he said, pulling her with him to an empty room behind the stage. Her eyes brimming with tears, lips quivering, the tightening feeling making it hard to breathe, she just looked at him.

She wanted to say, 'Where's Ashley? You never left her, not like you said you did so where is she?' But Ashley said not to say anything and in a way she didn't want to.

"Manny," he said again and leaned toward her, kissed her softly on the lips. And she closed her eyes and kissed him back. She couldn't help it, she loved him. Loved him since the day she saw him get out of his father's car and climb the front steps to the school, camera strap over his shoulder. Black leather jacket. She can close her eyes and see it still.

"What's wrong?" he said, pulling away, seeing her dark eyes filled with tears.

"It's uh…it's nothing," She swallowed hard on all the hurt, the betrayal like a lump in her throat. She didn't want it to be like this. She wanted him to be in love with her, and only her. When he had come to the skating rink calling her name, coming onto the ice and nearly falling, telling her it was her and not Ashley, she had believed him. Believed him with all her heart.

"Okay. Well, can you come to my garage tonight?" His half smile, pleading eyes. It was on the tip of her tongue to ask him about Ashley. 'Where is she? Where is she?' And things were clearing up. Always in his garage, or empty classrooms, or in the ravine. Always hidden. From Joey, from his friends, a secret. For him she was the other woman. She narrowed her eyes at him. And his expression, puzzled, but under the puzzlement he knew what she might have discovered. Just like Ashley Manny could see this, see how he was careful and cautious about these lies, how he looked to see if she knew.

"Can you?" he said, taking her hands, kissing them.

"Yeah, yes. Of course I can," She smiled up at him. He smiled back, and she saw the relief in his eyes. She saw it clearly.

In his garage, the cold barely touched by the space heaters, he wrapped his arms around her and she wanted to cry. This was where she wanted to be, always. Why did he have to lie to her, love Ashley, too?

"You sang good. You and Ashley. It was a good performance,"

"Thanks," He ducked his head, pressed his lips together like he does. Manny cleared her throat.

"So…so you can tell her now, tell her about us," She tried to look into his eyes, but he wouldn't look at her.

"Right?"

He wouldn't look at her. His eyes were everywhere else.

"Yeah, yep. Right," he said.

Liar, Manny thought. But right then it didn't really matter because she was laying on the couch and he was laying on top of her. His weight crushing and comforting, everywhere he touched her felt electric. Liar. She flicked his tongue with hers, trailed her fingertips over his shoulder blades. Ashley was between them, maybe she always would be.

"I love you, Manny," he said, his voice husky, just above a whisper.

"I love you, too,"