Jonathan tiredly stacked box after box in the storage room of the drug store he had started working at. It wasn't his ideal job but they had been the first to call him back. Hopefully, he would get a response from one of the other places he had applied to.

The clock on the wall noisily ticked. Half-past ten, it claimed. Jonathan suppressed a groan; he had been given the graveyard shift at the twenty-four hour store. His shift didn't end for another hour and a half. Wonderful, Jonathan thought miserably. It wasn't like he had homework to do or a girlfriend to see…

Jonathan's thoughts drifted off and he thought of Annabel. Things had progressed rather quickly. Not that he was complaining. Annabel was simple and never associated herself with petty drama. She was intelligent, interested in Psychology, and easy to talk to.

They had been spending plenty of time together. The previous night, when Jonathan had had an earlier shift, he went over to her room for the first time. Their intentions had been to study but one thing led to another…

He could still feel her lips pressed to his jaw and trailing down his neck—

"Jonathan," Ricky, the other employee on duty, called.

Jonathan dropped the box he had been holding and snapped out of his fantasy. If Grandmother knew what his thoughts consisted of lately, she'd lock him in the church for a week.

"What?" Jonathan snapped.

"You're working the cash register," Ricky informed him. "I'm going on my break."

Jonathan muttered something unintelligent under his breath. He walked out of the storage room and took his post at the front, still annoyed by his pot-smoking colleague.

Jonathan checked his watch. Could time move any slower?

He distracted himself by rearranging the candy bar, magazine, and lighter displays. Jonathan wiped down the counter and checked his watch again. Five minutes had past.

Jonathan let out a frustrated groan.

The bell above the door chimed. Jonathan's eyes flitted in that direction, wondering who would be buying things at this hour.

He stopped breathing when he saw it was Brynn who had walked in.

She paused when she saw him behind the counter. Her hair was damp and she wore an oversized t-shirt, boxers, and flip-flops. Tiny, red bumps had formed along her jaw and there were dark circles under her eyes. Brynn scoffed and muttered, "Of course," as she disappeared down an aisle.

Jonathan bit his tongue angrily. Why was Brynn still upset with him? He thought she would have gotten over some unimportant guy like him.

Besides—her excuse had been, 'what would people think?' With that reason, he wondered if she ever viewed him as a 'friend' and not 'that kid who helps me with my homework.'

Jonathan angrily rearranged the tabloid display. Why was he letting this get to him? All summer he had kept thoughts of Brynn far from his mind and he had done well. He occupied his head with math equations and Psychology facts; he did more chores than he was asked to; and he had even started running although he didn't last long. Jonathan had refused to sulk over Brynn's denial and harsh words; he was better than that. His crush had been silly and childish.

Then why did it feel like he had received a blow to the stomach whenever he caught sight of her?

He went back to thinking about his night with Annabel in order to distract him.

Five minutes later, Brynn grudgingly approached the counter with a basket in tow. She placed the basket on the counter and stared at the door.

Jonathan scanned the items without taking his eyes off her face. She glanced at him quickly before looking back to the door.

Jonathan pressed his palms against the counter. "Why were you at the restaurant the other night?"

She stared at him. He stared back.

"Am I not allowed to eat wherever I want?" she flatly asked.

"You weren't eating. Did you follow me?" he ignored her statement.

Brynn narrowed her eyes at him. "You think I would waste my time to watch you and your little toy snuggle?"

His hands clenched up when she mentioned Annabel. "Why were you there?"

Brynn nodded at her purchases. "Right now might not be the best time to start a fight with me."

Jonathan glanced down at what she had purchased. A box of tampons, a chocolate bar, and Advil. Oh.

"Can you hurry up?" she growled.

Jonathan started bagging the items. "What's gotten into you lately, Brynn?"

"I'm not playing shrink and patient right now, Jonathan."

"I hear you've acquired a new reputation," he went on, looking up at her accusingly. He may not be one for gossip but Jonathan had overheard all the stories floating around. From what he had heard, Brynn was skipping class, arriving to class drunk, had slept with half the golf team. There were several more stories but they were too ludicrous to even be considered.

Brynn was massaging her temples now. "For the love of god, will you hurry up?"

"I guess you're going back to your old ways—"

Brynn grabbed her chocolate bar and walked out of the store without paying.

"Oh, come on," Jonathan hissed. He stomped around the counter and chased after Brynn.

"You know we have security cameras," he yelled after her. She ignored him and kept on walking.

Jonathan growled and started jogging. "Brynn," he called as he approached her. "Brynn!"

He caught up with her and grabbed her by the elbow, pulling her back. Brynn twisted her arm out of his grip and shoved him as hard as she could. He stumbled back, catching himself at the last second. As he stood straight again, Brynn was in his face.

"Will you stop?" she roared. "Why can't you figure out I want nothing to do with you?"

"Who says I want anything to do with you?" he asked in a low voice.

Brynn's pupils were dilated and her lips were pulled back, exposing her teeth. She reminded Jonathan of a wild animal prepared to pounce on its prey. "If you didn't want anything to do with me, you wouldn't have followed me."

"You stole a candy bar—"

"Oh, fuck the candy bar!" Brynn shouted, throwing it at him. She raked a hand through her damp hair. "I can hardly look at you I'm so angry."

"I had a right to keep my distance," he hissed.

"That's not what friends do, you idiot."

They paused, both panting. Jonathan watched as Brynn regained her breath. Something about her was horribly off. He had never witnessed her in such a violent state. It wouldn't surprise him if she wrapped her hands around his neck and strangled him in the parking lot.

She had definitely changed over the summer.

"What's happened to you?" he asked quietly.

"Nothing—"

"Don't give me that," he hissed. "Anyone with a brain can tell that there's something up with you. What is it? Is it because I didn't talk to you? Or is it Caitlin Marx? Has she been saying things?"

Brynn's feral expression disappeared and her features slackened. She looked past Jonathan with wary eyes and muttered, "It doesn't matter."

He ignored her statement. Explanations for Brynn's new mood formed in his head rapidly. One conversation from a while back hit Jonathan in the face. He paused and studied her face carefully before slowly asking, "Does it have to do with Olivia?"

Her throat bobbed when Jonathan uttered the woman's name. Brynn's eyes flitted down to her shoes and she sucked her lips into her mouth. He knew he struck a chord with that.

She looked back up at him with blank eyes. Brynn shrugged, took a step back, and quietly murmured, "It doesn't matter."

Jonathan stared at her disbelievingly, knowing for a fact that it did matter. His eyes bore lasers into hers, demanding that she open up and allow him to enter her mind.

Brynn turned around and sulked away from him. He watched her shuffle through the parking lot until the darkness engulfed her. Jonathan looked down at the ground and sighed. What happened right then? What was going on with Brynn? Why did he feel like the world was weighing down on his shoulders? He thought back to her eyes and how conflicted they had been. He had seen Brynn distressed plenty of times. Whatever she was experiencing then was new to her.

Jonathan didn't like it in the least.

He took a deep breath and walked back inside. The store was painfully quiet and Jonathan had an urge to knock over shelves. He couldn't stand this sudden stillness.

Instead of destroying the interior of the store, Jonathan opened the cash register and placed two dollars inside to pay for Brynn's stolen candy bar.

. . .

Slamming the door behind her, Brynn stomped into the lobby of her dorm and purposely ignored the stares of the few girls lingering around. She shot glares at them and they all looked down, faking interest in their senseless tabloids. As she entered the stairwell, she could feel their questioning gazes returning to her back.

Brynn face-planted onto her bed once she was inside her room. She was suddenly overwhelmed with exhaustion and let out a long groan. Why did the universe hate her so much? It would be her luck that Jonathan worked at the closest convenience store. Whoever had intended for this to happen was probably sipping a beer and chuckling darkly at her misery.

Then again, why did she deserve kindness from the universe? It made sense that she was being punished in this way. Your mom killed many innocent people; therefore, we are going to make your life a living hell.

That was exactly what her life had come to.

People stared at her whenever she walked by, whispering to their friends: Don't you know who that is? Do you know who she's related to? Caitlin Marx sneered at her whenever she walked by. Victory shone in her eyes and screamed at Brynn, I told the world your darkest secret! Now everyone thinks you're a freak! There was no escaping their harsh, fearful glares.

The ones she received from her family were even worse. Overnight, they had figured out what a freak she was. It wouldn't surprise her if her parents regretted adopting the daughter of a murderer. Conrad kept his distance; Cadence turned her nose up at Brynn and looked the other way whenever she entered a room. It was a miracle if they could be in the same room together for five minutes without fighting.

And then there was Jonathan. Anger swelled up inside of her whenever she thought of him. He had been a lousy friend. Brynn had stood up for him and welcomed him into her life when no one else would. But the second she rejected him, Jonathan decided to end it. Everything they had done together and had learned about each other suddenly didn't matter.

Her anger turned into heartbrokenness. Why couldn't Jonathan have picked up his phone and worked this out with her? If he had, would things be different? Would she not feel like she was being sucked into an endless black hole all the time? Would Brynn have changed her mind about him? What would have happened if she had given him a chance?

It was too late for that. Jonathan had that thing to play with now. What was so special about her, anyway? Yeah, she was kind of cute in a not-so-noticeable way. You really had to look to notice that she was cute. Did Jonathan look at her a lot? Was she funny? Was she smart? She had to be smart; Jonathan would never date a girl who couldn't name every country in the world in under a minute.

Then why had he wanted to be with her? Brynn knew it wasn't because she was smart—her grades at the moment could prove that. She wasn't some strikingly gorgeous girl so she doubted that was it either. She had her pretty days but the majority of the time, she just looked like crap. Was it her humor? No, Jonathan usually chastised her for the things that came out of her mouth. Then what was it?

It doesn't matter, Brynn's mind grumbled. He's over you.

The realization widened the hole that was forming in her stomach.

Brynn rolled onto her side and stared at the spare bed pushed against the opposite wall. For the first time, she noticed the pair of shoes sitting on the mattress.

Brynn pushed herself up and stared at them. They were shiny, black Mary Jane's and looked as though they belonged to a small child. Faded, red ribbons were tied on top of both shoes.

The shoes were eerily familiar to her.

Slowly, Brynn walked over to them and looked down. How had they gotten here? Had someone broken into her room? Brynn timidly picked one of them up and turned it over in her hands repeatedly. Why they looked so familiar to her was on the tip of her tongue…

Brynn dropped the shoe as though they had sent an electric shock through her body when she finally realized where she knew them from.

This had to be a sick joke.

Her father had gotten them for her when she was younger. Not George but Charles Branden.

She nearly threw up when she made the connection.

With lightning speed, Brynn grabbed the shoes and threw them under the spare bed and out of sight.

She dropped onto her bed and stared at her shaking hands. Who had gotten them and why would they put them in her room?

. . .

"Here comes crazy."

Brynn glared at Caitlin Marx as she walked past her table the next morning. After finding the shoes the previous night, she had downed several beers and stayed awake until dawn, too shaken to turn off the lights and sleep. Her head throbbed painfully and her stomach made disturbing noises. The only reason she was in the mess hall and not back in her dorm, sleeping off her hangover, was because she didn't want to be anywhere near the shoes.

She took a seat at the back of the mess hall and stared at the plastic tabletop. Her stomach lurched when she heard footsteps approaching. Several seconds later, Caitlin and her 'entourage' were sitting down at her table.

"How are you feeling this morning, Brynn?" Caitlin mocked her in a sweet voice. "Are you feeling dizzy? Hearing any voices? Do you have an urge to kill anyone?"

Brynn glared at her. "At the moment, you."

"You're shit," Caitlin taunted. "The Kileys should have left you on the streets to rot. You don't belong here; we don't accept murderers."

Before she could do something that would get her kicked out of school and put under house arrest, someone cleared their throat behind her. Brynn turned around to see Dominic Langston looming over her.

"What are you doing over here, Caitlin?" Dominic casually asked. He nodded his head in the other direction. "Trash belongs over there."

Caitlin grumbled and left with her entourage. They glared at Brynn as they walked away. Once they were gone, Dominic sat down across from Brynn.

She huffed. "No."

"Brynn—"

"I said no," she growled. "I don't want to talk to you."

"I need to talk to you."

"You can talk to my back as you watch me leave."

Dominic let out an irritated sigh and tapped his fingers against the tabletop. "I wanted to apologize."

"Whatever it's for, I don't accept." Brynn slung her book bag over her shoulder and prepared to leave.

"Will you sit down? And you know what I'm apologizing for."

She tapped her finger against her chin. "There are lots of things you could be saying sorry for. You'll have to be more specific."

He looked up at her with sad, tired eyes. "I'm sorry about that night."

"Oh, Dom," she said in a voice that a teacher would use with a continuously misbehaving kindergartener. "I'm not mad at you for that night. I'm mad at you for all the days after when you chose to ignore me when I needed you most."

Dominic gulped and nodded slowly. His eyes were sincere when he looked back up at her. "I know. I was an ass and I regret it all. But…I was upset about being suspended, Brynn. I know that sounds stupid but at the time, it seemed like a pretty good reason—"

"You can save your breath," she interrupted. "I really don't care. Nothing changes it."

"You don't know how sorry I am," he said. "We all are—me, Terrence, Sydney…"

"Cry me a river, why don't ya?" Brynn snapped. She sat back down and glared at him with enough anger to kill a man. "Had you guys cared, you wouldn't have abandoned me. Sydney wouldn't have screwed my boyfriend. I'm not going to forgive you guys that easily. In fact, I probably won't."

"What will it take, then?"

Brynn was quiet. She and Dominic held each other's gaze for several seconds. Brynn broke it and shook her head. "Nothing. I don't think I can forgive and forget that easily. I don't know why you would want to be friends with me, anyway. I'm not the most likable person on campus right now in case you hadn't heard."

Dominic sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. "I could care less what people think of you. They don't matter."

"If only it was that simple," she said quietly. The look in Dominic's eyes made Brynn's steeliness melt some. She stood and looked at him sadly. "Take care, Dom."

He curtly nodded and Brynn sulked away. She wondered if denying his apology had been a mistake. Why couldn't she forgive and forget?

But it was better to reject him. Dragging Dominic into this mess that had become her life would only be selfish. It was better to deal with the demons flying around her head on her own.

. . .

Jonathan sat in Annabel's room with a book in his lap later that week. Outside, the temperature had dropped considerably. Annabel sat by the heater with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Her eyes kept flitting to Jonathan.

"What?" Jonathan asked as he turned a page in his book.

Annabel shrugged. "You've been distracted all week."

"I have a lot on my mind. School is more challenging this year," Jonathan lied about the last part. He did have things on his mind, however. A certain someone with strawberry blonde hair and angry eyes to be specific…

Annabel crawled up her bed to Jonathan and pried the book out of his grasp. She set it on the nightstand next to her bed and climbed onto his lap.

"You've been studying so much lately," she purred. "Why don't you take a break? I'll distract you from whatever's on your mind."

Usually, her offer would be tempting. At the moment, the last thing Jonathan wanted to do was fool around. He sighed and stared at the ceiling, quietly willing her to stop rubbing against him. "I'm tired."

She leaned down and pressed her lips below his earlobe. "I'll wake you up," she whispered, her breath hot against his skin.

His hormones got the better of him and next thing he knew, he was on top of a giggling Annabel and his lips were crashing down on hers. Annabel's arms wrapped around his neck as she kissed him back. He was briefly distracted from thoughts of Brynn as he and Annabel kissed.

Soon, his mind began to wander to other things. What's been bothering Brynn so much lately? He thought. It had been nearly a week since their argument at the drug store and all he could think about was her explosive temper. There has to be something else on her mind. She can't be that bothered by what I did.

Jonathan tried to focus on Annabel. His lips trailed up and down her neck while his hands roamed her body. She gasped when he cupped her breasts and squeezed them hard. Annabel's hands gripped his shirt and pulled it over his head. Hers was on the floor a second later.

As he fumbled with the clasp of her bra, his thoughts trailed off again. What happened over the summer? He wondered. Maybe I should have kept in contact with her. A noise outside her room caused his eyes to flit up quickly. For a brief second, he was filled with fear. What if Grandmother knows I'm here? What would she do if she found Annabel and me half-naked? Would she—ow, ow, ow, Annabel, don't do that!

"Stop digging your nails into my skin," he muttered against her mouth.

"You're getting distracted," she huffed.

Jonathan rolled his eyes as she rolled on top and took over. He closed his eyes and let out a quiet groan as she moved her body against his. Jonathan's hands drew circles against the soft skin of her bare back and he had a strong desire to take off the rest of her clothes and have her. They hadn't gone all the way yet and Jonathan wished he had bought condoms so they could. His breath grew shallow as he felt her undo his belt buckle and unzip his pants.

When he opened his eyes, it was Brynn who was tugging at his pants.

Jonathan jumped, startling the girl sitting between his legs. He blinked a few times and saw that it was Annabel not Brynn.

"What?" she snapped, her voice dripping with annoyance.

"I—uh—I—" Jonathan rambled, at a loss for words. He gulped and quickly lied, "I don't feel good."

Annabel stared at him blankly. "Okay?"

He swung his legs over the side of the bed and snatched his shirt off the ground. "Let's do this another time," he gasped out as he pulled his shirt over his head.

Annabel covered her bare chest with her arms and nodded. "Fine."

"Sorry. I just—sorry," he said and quickly kissed her forehead before running out of her dorm room, still shaken by the girl he had imagined.

. . .

Brynn walked under the dark night with her Walkman tucked under her arm. The cold air bit her bare legs and she wished she hadn't worn the ratty jean shorts she had on. The only thing keeping her warm was the flannel button up she wore and the booze sloshing around in her stomach, giving her a light buzz.

The silver flask (that had become a necessity in the last few weeks), hidden away in her pocket, pressed against her hip. She hummed along to the sleepy song drifting into her ears as she walked across the campus green, heading to Checker's for a late meal.

She walked off the green and onto the sidewalk. After several minutes of walking, she saw a group of freshmen boys chilling on the sidewalk. She would have to walk by them in order to get to Checker's. It was that or take the long route which consisted of going through dark alleys.

The latter didn't seem too appealing to her.

Keeping her head low, Brynn walked toward them. The sound of their voices began to fade and the only noise was the sound of her biker boots hitting the pavement. Brynn sucked in her breath as she felt their eyes on her.

She was halfway past them when one of them called out, "Hey, Psycho."

Brynn gritted her teeth together.

"Going to visit your mom in jail, Psycho?" another one called.

She stopped and balled her fists up.

"Did you help her kill your dad?" a third one asked.

She lost it and stomped back to them. "I'd run if I was you."

"Why's that?" one of them taunted. He had a gleam in his eyes and Brynn wanted nothing more than to gouge them out.

"You wouldn't want me to lose it, would you?" she snarled. "I'm Psycho, remember? I could have your large intestines all over the sidewalk in a matter of seconds!"

Her words shut them up. The one with the gleaming eyes gulped and his friends shifted uncomfortably on their feet. One of them muttered, "Dude, let's get out of here…"

"What?" Brynn taunted. "Are you scared of me?"

"Brynn," a voice barked. Brynn and the several boys looked in the direction of the voice. A dark figure stood with his hands in his pocket.

"Don't you have better things to do than threatening freshmen?" Jonathan chastised.

The boys took that as their cue to leave. Brynn groaned and crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm scaring them off so they'll leave me alone."

Jonathan clucked his tongue. "People don't leave the things they're scared of alone. They get rid of them."

Brynn narrowed her eyes at him. "What are you doing out here?"

"Going to my dorm," he nonchalantly answered. "What are you doing? Looking for fights?"

"No but if you're trying to start one then yes."

"Lucky for you, I'm not."

"Then what are you doing?"

Jonathan shrugged. "Keeping you out of trouble?"

Brynn scoffed. "I can take care of myself."

"Because you do a great job at that," he sarcastically answered. "Every time I see you, you're trying to start a fight and end up with your nose broken again."

Brynn's hands clenched into fists. "Would you like me to break your nose?"

He smirked. "No."

"Then don't say stupid things," she snapped. "And you're no better at taking care of yourself. If I recall correctly, your motto was, 'lie still, take it like a man, and wait for them to get bored of you.' That's real smart."

"Concerned for my wellbeing?"

"Not in the least."

"Good," he replied. "And it's only fair that I watch out for you especially after all those times you intervened with Riley and Griffin."

"How kind of you," she spat out.

They stood silently, sizing up one another.

"Well, seeing as to how there are no damsels in distress around here, I think you can go," Brynn said. "Goodnight, Jonathan."

She started to walk away. Behind her, she heard Jonathan's footsteps following her. Brynn looked over her shoulder at him and glared.

"Bye."

Jonathan caught up with her and looked down at her. He had grown a few inches over the summer, she noticed. No longer were they about the same height.

"You're still angry," he observed.

"No shit, Sherlock."

Jonathan chuckled quietly. "Would it make you feel better if I admit it was foolish of me to ignore you all summer?"

"A little but not enough to make me not want to rip your lungs out." Were they teasing each other? Now that she thought about it, she suddenly wasn't that angry with him. She was still pissed but no longer furious.

"Could you rip something else out? Like my kidneys?"

Brynn grabbed his arm and stopped him. "What are you doing?"

"What do you mean?" he asked innocently.

"This!" she exclaimed. "You're acting like there's nothing wrong between us."

Jonathan sighed and pried his arm out of her grip. "Like I said, it was foolish of me to ignore you."

Part of her wanted to believe that he was sorry while the other part said he was full of bull. She had been able to tell Dominic had been sincere about his apology; Jonathan, however, was no open book. He could have something up his sleeve. What if he wasn't actually sorry? What if she got hurt again?

Jonathan patiently waited for her to answer. Brynn sighed and fixed him with a serious look. "If you ever do that again, I'll cut your balls off with a butter knife."

Jonathan grimaced at her threat. "I've been warned…"

"This doesn't mean I forgive you," she said as she started walking again. "I would love to cut them off, actually. But I won't as long as you don't screw me over like that again."

Brynn's logic told her she was making a huge mistake by forgiving him so easily. What if he did it again? Then I'll ruin his life, she thought darkly. But for now, he'll just have to work for my trust and forgiveness.

How long would it be before things went up in flames, she wondered.

"Might I ask where we're going?" Jonathan asked a few minutes later.

"Checker's," Brynn answered. "You're going to buy me dinner."

"Is that so?"

"Do you want me to forgive you or no?"

Jonathan muttered something unintelligent under his breath and she smirked; this might actually be fun.

They walked inside and slid into a booth in the back. Jonathan took his jacket off and Brynn's eyes widened in surprise.

"Were you with that one girl earlier?" she questioned.

"Annabel? Yes," Jonathan answered. "Why?"

"Your neck is covered in hickeys," she scoffed.

Immediately, Jonathan's hand went to his neck. His face turned bright red and Jonathan awkwardly cleared his throat.

"I'm guessing you guys had a good time?" Brynn pushed even though she felt bitter.

Jonathan ignored her question and stared at the menu, still hiding the marks on his throat. "I suppose," he said quietly.

"Who is she?" Brynn asked. And what was so damn special about her?

"Her name's Annabel," Jonathan said as he put his jacket back on and zipped it all the way up. "She's a freshman."

"She looks young to be a freshman."

"She moved up a few grades."

So she was a genius. Brynn had a feeling that was what had caught his attention. "How cute. Two geniuses dating. The babies will be Einsteins."

The thought of them having babies together disgusted her. Jonathan didn't seem like the baby type, anyway.

"Do you like her?" Brynn asked a second later.

The waitress came with their drinks and Jonathan took a sip of his water. Puzzled, he answered, "Of course I like her. Why wouldn't I?"

Brynn shrugged. "I don't know. I thought she was a rebound."

Jonathan set his drink down and pressed his lips together. Brynn held his gaze and waited for a reply.

"She's not a rebound, Brynn," he answered quietly.

"You guys got together pretty quickly, don't you think?"

Jonathan was tearing open sugar packets and pouring them onto the table. He sculpted a sugar mountain as he weighed Brynn's words in his mind. "I'm sorry for putting you in that position at your house. It was a reckless thing to do. But I genuinely like her."

"Ouch."

"What?"

"Telling me you liked me was 'reckless?'" Brynn asked disbelievingly. "What, were you feeling brave that night and thought, 'why don't I confuse the shit out of Brynn and tell her I like her?'"

"That's not what I was thinking—"

"Whatever," Brynn interrupted angrily. She stirred her straw around in her drink, creating a whirlpool. Heat had risen to her face and was making her uncomfortable.

Brynn ran her hands through her hair angrily. His words were eating away at her. Reckless played on repeat in her mind. "No. It's not whatever, it's absolute bullshit. You can't tell me that you had feelings for me, not call me for months, then tell me it was reckless. You didn't just like me out of the blue, Jonathan. You didn't decide that night, 'Oh, hey, I think I like Brynn. I should tell her I like her.' No, because if that had been the case, you wouldn't have taken it so personally when I said no. Reckless is when you decide you want to hook up with someone and never talk about it again afterwards. I know reckless, Jonathan; you don't. You must have liked me for a while and had the guts to tell me. So don't you dare tell me it was reckless because you obviously didn't think it was at the time."

Brynn exhaled for several seconds after her rant. Her hands were shaking so she put them under her thighs. Jonathan actually looked shaken by her words. Usually, he wore a blank expression, even when she went on tirades like that. Jonathan was a master at hiding his emotions.

She thought she would be glad when he was able to understand how badly he had hurt her. At the moment, she felt like jumping off a building.

Finally, Jonathan spoke. His voice was slow and cautious. "I had no idea my actions would have that effect on you."

Brynn looked away and sniffed. "Well, congratulations, they did."

The waitress arrived with their food, and sensing tension, dropped it off and hurried away. Brynn pushed her plate to the side and stared at the table.

"It was immature of me to do that," he went on. "I didn't answer because I was afraid of what you had to say to me. I thought you would tell me to never contact you again and I couldn't bear to hear it. So I accepted the fact that that was what you had to say. I thought it would be better if I left you alone and allowed you to forget about me."

Brynn closed her eyes and whispered, "You should have just answered your phone and listened to what I had to say."

Jonathan leaned forward, looking concerned. "What were you going to say?"

Brynn thought about all the conversations she had imagined that summer and what she would say. Help me, Jonathan, my family can't stand to look at me… I've ruined everything… I really need you because I can't stand to be alone… Sometimes, I hear her voice at night and it freaks the fuck out of me. Can you make her go away?... Maybe we can give it a shot and see what happens. Who knows—it might actually work between us…

Brynn shook her head and muttered, "It doesn't matter."

Jonathan's hands were folded in front of his mouth and he studied her carefully. "What happened over the summer?"

Brynn shook her head slowly and a sad smile spread across her face. "All kinds of shit you wouldn't believe."

"I want to know."

She looked up at Jonathan and examined him carefully. He had changed so much over the summer. The once gawky, awkward teenager was growing into a young man. He was no longer gawky but thin and tall and had even acquired a bit of muscle over the summer. His cheekbones were sharper than she remembered and his eyes gleamed behind his glasses. Dark waves framed his face and freckles were scattered across his face, his neck, and disappeared beneath his shirt collar. Brynn's eyes kept returning to his lips, pink and full. They were feminine, a soft alternative to his other sharp features.

An intense heat bloomed in her stomach and she wondered why on earth she had said no that night.

Brynn snapped out of her daze and sighed. "I don't want to talk about it."

"When will you be ready?" he pressed.

"I don't know," she murmured. "Things just…they're not how they should be right now."

And with that, they were silent. Brynn stared at her hands, asking herself if it would ever be alright. Would this hole in her stomach ever go away? Could she and her family go back to how things used to be? And most importantly, would she ever get over the guilt and shame she felt at being the daughter of Olivia Rivers?

Brynn knew she had a long way to go and at that moment, things were looking pretty hopeless. She just hoped Jonathan would stand by her side this time and not leave her again.

But would Jonathan even want to stay with this new, darker person she had become? Or would he run off again?

She slowly looked up and they stared at each other. Silently, they both agreed that things were going to be harder than ever before between them.

. . .

A/N: It's up finally! I'm sorry this is so delayed. School and cross country have taken over my life and I'm always too tired to stay up past nine. I don't have a study hall either so updating is difficult. Ugh. I hate having things to do. I miss being able to sit on the couch all day and do absolutely nothing…

Enough ranting. Thank you my lovely reviewers: dEnIsE tHe StRaNgE, jediwho, K9Train, Guest, ALastDanceAtDawn, Kagome Narome, Katherine, Solstice White, BunnyMooMooMonster, Roxie13, AlainHotCoco1, Amber, and NightRain2DaySnow! Thank you everyone who added the story to their alerts! How are we almost at 400?! We just hit 300! I don't know if I'm doing a sneak peek this time. I'm afraid I'm going to give too much away and I don't have as much time to write one. But if you guys have any other fun ideas for me to do, PM me!

In this chapter, Brynn and Jonathan did not officially make up. Brynn doesn't trust Jonathan entirely and is convinced that he is going to leave her once again. Jonathan also wants to get into her head and that was why he was so eager with his apology. He was shaken by her words, though. Jonathan and Brynn have a rocky road ahead of them and their relationship is not going to be as cute and fluffy and teasing as it used to be.

Also, this has been bothering me lately: I feel like I haven't made Brynn as dark as I intended for her to be. I don't like making her dark and I think I'm holding back a little but I need her to be dark. Can you guys tell that she is? Because in the next few chapters, Brynn is doing stuff she never would have done before and I don't want you guys to think, "WOAH WOAH HOLD UP SHE WASN'T THAT DARK IN THE LAST CHAPTER!" Let me know what you think.

I think that covers it. The next chapter may or may not be up this weekend. Sorry! I have a very busy weekend coming up with this school festival that I have to volunteer at, cross country, etc. Someone shoot me. But I will try to write whenever I have free time this weekend! Read and review please!