For the next two weeks, Jess and Alexandra didn't speak to each other.

It was quite awkward, considering that they had math and English together and shared the same lunch period, but there was little they could do except do their best to ignore each other and pretend that they didn't exist.

There was just too much tension between them and Jess wished there was some way to get away from Alexandra, like switch classes so he wasn't in the same classes as her. Unfortunately, in a school this small, there was only one teacher for every subject per year, which meant that there was no hope of getting into a different classroom.

Despite their best efforts, they still couldn't completely avoid casting glances at each other. Alexandra shot a few uncomfortable looks his way and he did the same to her in return and every single time, they managed to lock eyes despite thinking that the other wasn't looking.

Jess had opted to sit with some of the guys from the track team but he couldn't help but feel bad when he saw her sitting alone at lunch with only a novel or homework to keep her company. He wanted to sit with her again, because his teammates were rowdy and it was hard to get more than a word in before someone else leapt in to add something to the conversation and it reminded Jess too much of what his home life had been like when Brenda and Ellie had still been living at home… minus all of the catty teenage girl drama.

His teammates, for all of their excitement and rowdiness, were great on the field but not so much at the lunch table - not that he would ever tell them that.

Jess turned his attention back to his teammate, who was affectionately nicknamed "Waffles", to make it look like he was paying attention but in reality, he wasn't listening to a single word that came out of his mouth and Waffles might as well have been a character in a silent film.

He happened to glance over at Alexandra and felt his stomach drop when he saw her face contort in shock followed by rage and horror as she leapt to her feet and cursed at Scott Hoager, after which silence washed over the cafeteria as heads turned to look in her direction.

Jess didn't even notice his legs moving and when he blinked, he was already by Alexandra's table and standing between her and Scott Hoager just as he had pulled his arm back for a punch and wound up taking the punch that had been meant for Alexandra.

He stumbled but managed to remain on his feet despite how shaky his legs felt. He didn't even know how he'd managed to cross the cafeteria and come to her defense so quickly but here he was, cheek throbbing and arms raised to defend himself like he was about to fight Scott Hoager in the ring.

"Back off, Hoager," he demanded.

"Get out of my way, Aarons!" Hoager snapped as he pushed him aside and lunged across the table for Alexandra.

Jess tried to go after him, to stop him from hurting Alexandra, but found himself wrestling with Gary Fulcher, who was a lot stronger than he looked and gave Jess such a hard time that he couldn't shake him to help Alexandra.

He then heard another voice shout "hey, don't touch her!" and spotted the dark-haired boy who had told Alexandra that he was trying out for football running towards them at top speed. He didn't even try to stop and instead, used his momentum to shove Scott Hoager to the floor much like a linebacker before throwing a few punches that all managed to land.

"Hey, break it up!" a security guard shouted.

They were ordered by the furious security guards to head straight to the principal's office and were even escorted there like a bunch of criminals. Though it was no surprise, the principal was unimpressed and quite disappointed in them once he found out that they had been sent to his office for fighting in the cafeteria.

It wasn't so cut and dry, Jess thought, but the man obviously wasn't interested in dealing with "he said, she said" accounts of the fight. He wanted to hear the whole story from everyone's perspective, but nobody was in a talking mood, not even Alexandra.

"I'm not talking until my parents get here," she blurted out, crossing her arms over her chest in defiance.

"Young lady, nothing good will come out of your insolence!" Principal Thomas seethed, already sounding like he was at his wit's end.

"So then give me detention, I don't care!"

Jess was grateful for the fact that his father was at work in D.C. and although his mother was home, he lied and said that she was working, too, just to prevent her from showing up because the last thing he needed was to get an earful about how he was causing trouble… even though Scott Hoager was the one who had started it.

It wouldn't matter to them, though, because his parents didn't want to waste time and gas coming to school unless they really had to, like in an actual emergency. Getting into a fight at school was not an emergency in their eyes and, had he been younger, it would have earned him a whupping.

Since nobody wanted to talk, not even under threat of Saturday detention, they waited in silence for Mr. Atwater to show up and when he did, Jess felt a certain relief seeing the deputy sheriff. Mr. Atwater was dressed in his uniform and carried himself with a sense of responsibility while possessing an aura of sternness that could make even the most hardened criminal squirm in their seat. It was definitely making Hoager squirm in the seat next to him.

"What's the problem here?"

"Oh, Sheriff Atwater, I wasn't expecting you!" Principal Thomas spluttered. "I thought your wife was going to come in."

"She's working in D.C.," he retorted, appearing irritated by the principal's statement.

Jess sensed Scott Hoager and Gary Fulcher stiffen beside him as the deputy sheriff turned his attention towards them, flashing the gun in his holster, whether intentionally or unintentionally, and felt quite satisfied seeing them drop their tough guy facades so quickly. Mr. Atwater then turned to his daughter and said,

"Alex, what happened, honey?"

"Scott Hoager spit into my food and so I punched him."

"And Freddie, why are you here?"

"Scott and his buddy tried to put his hands on Alex-"

"Because she hit me first!" Scott shouted.

"You spit in my food!" Alexandra snapped.

"So what? You-"

"Enough," Mr. Atwater snapped at Scott, shooting him such a cold glare that immediately shut him up and even caused him to give off a bit of a vibe that he was scared of the deputy sheriff, which served him right for causing so much trouble today.

"And Jess, why are you here?"

"I stepped in to stop Hoager, too," he admitted. "And then he punched me."

It would be a miracle if the next few weeks passed by without him developing a bruise but with how hard his cheek throbbed, he was more than sure that he would find a mark there soon and would have to make up some kind of lie to his parents to keep them from finding out about the fight, like that the guys on the track team had gotten too rowdy in the locker room smacking each other with towels or something and he'd gotten caught in the crossfire.

That could work.

It was much better than his other idea: to tell them he'd run into a wall, which was not convincing in the slightest. Even Jess himself wasn't convinced of that lie, and decided to stick to his original idea in case his parents ever questioned him.

"Sheriff, I'm going to need to punish someone to set an example."

"I can see who's guilty here, plain as day, Mr. Thomas," Mr. Atwater said curtly, "and it's not my kids or Jess."

"Don't forget that Alexandra was the one who threw the first punch."

"And what's the lesson you're trying to teach here, that she shouldn't defend herself when someone attacks her?"

Principal Thomas was really brave to say these things to the deputy sheriff, of all people, and was fighting a losing battle, Jess thought.

He had little chance of convincing Mr. Atwater that his daughter was at fault and if he was in the sheriff's shoes, Jess knew he wouldn't have been any different. What Scott Hoager had done to Alexandra had been a real scummy thing and he was lucky that the worst thing he got in retribution were a few punches thrown his way and not a full-on beatdown, which was what the scuffle in the cafeteria would have devolved to if Freddie had enough time to lay him out.

"There are ways to express ourselves without physically assaulting others."

"I disagree in this situation. Spitting in her food is assault," Mr. Atwater pointed out curtly. It was clear that his patience was wearing thin and that he already wanted this conversation to be over. "Now, I have more important places I need to be so if you would please allow my kids and Jess to return to their classes, that would be great."

The principal pressed his lips together, conflict clear as day on his face. He shook his head and looked helplessly towards Mr. Atwater as he said,

"Sheriff, do you realize what you're asking?"

"I know exactly what I'm asking. And I don't want to be called back in here, Principal Thomas."

"Well, you heard the man," the principal sighed in defeat as he looked at Jess, Freddie, Alexandra. "Return to your classes. Hoager, Fulcher, stay behind. I still need to have a word with you."

Jess and Alexandra shot each other nervous glances as they left the principal's office, neither of them knowing what to say to the other despite wanting to say something, and couldn't deny that he felt grateful when Freddie and Mr. Atwater pulled her attention away from him and asked "are you okay?", giving Jess enough time to slip away and walk to his next class in silence.

The rest of the day seemed to drag on and on until Jess was convinced that he had gotten stuck in some kind of godforsaken time loop and could not begin to describe how relieved he was to hear the last bell of the day finally ring, signalling the end to a long, miserable day of school. But of course, he couldn't hope to be so lucky, because, when he made his way towards his dirt bike, he saw a small crowd of kids crowded around it in the parking lot after school, with his sister at the forefront.

He could tell that they had all gathered around for the same thing: to ask him about the fight today in the cafeteria and what had happened after security had escorted the five of them to the principal's office.

"Jess, Jess, what happened today in the lunchroom? Are you in trouble?" May Belle called when he came within earshot.

"No, I'm not in trouble."

"How come?" some kid Jess didn't recognize asked. He was short enough that he looked like a freshman and he was convinced that this doe-eyed kid was exactly that.

"The sheriff made sure that only Fulcher and Hoager got punished."

"Whoa, that's so cool!"

"Why did he stick his neck out for you?" another kid whose name Jess didn't know but was clearly in his year asked.

"The sheriff is Alex and Freddie's dad."

The entire group of kids went "Ohhhh…" like a chorus and Jess shook his head, wishing they would all just leave instead of making him feel like an animal at the zoo.

He was eternally grateful for the sheriff, though, who had firmly insisted that the principal only punish Scott Hoager and Gary Fulcher, who he saw as the guilty ones, and had refused to leave until he, Alexandra, and Freddie were allowed to leave without having to fear the threat of punishment later on. Thus, the principal let them go with a warning this time, which was more than good enough for Jess as long as Hoager and Fulcher kept their distance from now on.

"Okay, now beat it!" he told the kids. At this rate, he and May Belle were never going to get home unless he took the initiative and demanded some space.

"Don't tell Mom and Dad what happened today, you hear me?" Jess threatened once the crowd had dispersed.

"My lips are sealed," May Belle promised.

"Good."

When they got home, Jess put his bike away in the shed and went to do his chores. It wasn't until he was in the barn milking Miss Bessie that he heard someone approach him but he didn't think anything of it until he heard them say "hey" and looked over his shoulder to find Alexandra leaning against the doorway of the barn.

"Hey," Jess said in return.

"So, um, about today… I just wanted to say thanks for sticking up for me. I know things have been awkward between us these past few weeks but… yeah, thanks," she said sheepishly.

"It was no big deal," Jess assured her.

"My dad said he thinks he knows why Scott attacked me today. He told me not to tell anyone so can you keep a secret?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die."

"Well, apparently Scott Hoager's dad ran a meth lab and my dad arrested him in a raid a few days ago."

"What, seriously?" Jess' jaw dropped in surprise.

"Yup. He was producing and selling it and because of that, he's going to prison for a really long time."

"So your dad thinks Scott Hoager lashed out at you because of his dad's arrest?"

"I mean, when you think about it, it kinda makes sense."

"Yeah, true. Scott Hoager's always been a jerk but finding out that his dad sold meth really explains a lot," Jess scoffed. It didn't excuse his actions but the way he had behaved throughout the years made sense, given the environment he was growing up in. However, Jess didn't feel sorry for him, not one bit, because it wouldn't change the fact that Scott Hoager had tormented him for years and for a time, had also bullied Leslie.

"Seems like you two have history."

"We go way back," Jess snarked. Scott Hoager and Gary Fulcher had been messing with him as long as he could remember.

"Yeah, sure seems like it," Alexandra scoffed. Her tone then shifted, becoming softer as she said, "can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Who is Leslie Burke?"

"She's…" Jess paused, taking a moment to suck in a deep breath to steady himself. "She was a friend of mine, back when I was a kid."

"Did she move away or something?"

"No, she, uh… she died. She drowned in the creek out back in the forest when I was in fifth grade."

"Oh…" Alexandra's face fell. "Sorry for your loss."

"Thanks…"

"Wait!" Alexandra gasped. "Then how did she upload the poem I presented in class?"

"That's what I've been asking myself, too."

"Do you think her parents might have posted it?"

"I dunno," Jess shrugged. "The poem wasn't exactly a one-to-one. It sounded like it had been rewritten, y'know? I'm probably not making much sense but-"

"No, no, you're making sense," Alexandra assured him. "C-can I ask you a maybe insensitive question?"

"Shoot."

"Do you know for sure that she's dead?"

"There was a wake but… I didn't see her body." Would he be questioning events from seven years ago if he had been given a chance to see her body, or would that have messed him up even more than it already did?

His parents likely hadn't brought it up in an attempt to protect him, especially when he had already been traumatized enough by her passing that actually laying his eyes upon her corpse probably would have destroyed him. But at least he wouldn't be holding onto the tiniest doubt that his best friend was somehow alive somewhere in the world.

"Was there a funeral afterward?"

"No, her parents… they, uh, had her cremated and took the ashes back to Philadelphia."

"Oh…"

It was a lot to wrap their heads around but they decided to call it a day, Alexandra saying goodbye to Jess before stepping out of the barn and trudging back to her own house just across the way; Jess could tell she was gone when her footsteps disappeared from earshot.

After he finished his chores, Jess hopped onto his computer and pulled up the blog that hosted Leslie's poem. Then, when the sluggish internet connection finally loaded the page, he enlarged the profile picture that the poet had uploaded of herself.

There was nothing in the bio under the picture - all it contained was a pre-filled message that said, This poet has not added a description yet. - but the girl in the picture had long blonde hair that billowed past her shoulders, smiled brightly just like how Jess remembered Leslie grinning, and wore a sleeveless, ruby-pink tank top. There was a pond or river and a stretch of forest behind her in the blurry background but it wasn't distracting and didn't draw attention away from the girl in the photo.

But if this really was Leslie, then Jess had so many questions.

He felt his heart aching over all the years that had passed by in which he'd believed that she'd drowned in the river on that fateful day and couldn't even begin to process the swirl of thoughts in his head because they just didn't make sense.

But then he looked back to the photo and felt his lips quirk up when he saw how good she looked, how happy she appeared to be and most importantly, that she was alive. He would have never, not even in a million years, thought that he would get to see Leslie again, certainly not in this life. Heaven had always been in the back of his mind and served as a comfort on bad days when he really, really missed her and now, he didn't know what to think now that there was a chance that she wasn't dead like he'd believed.

Could it really be her? Could Leslie have survived somehow?

I don't even know how that's possible, Jess thought. He desperately wanted it to be true, to be able to one day bump into her and hug her like they hadn't spent the last seven years apart but he couldn't figure out how he might go about doing that.

He was still trying to come to terms with the fact that she was alive.

Figuring out how to get into contact with her was a challenge for later, Jess thought as he noticed it was already way past his bedtime and he couldn't waste any more time exploring the website tonight as he had school in the morning. Jess shut off his laptop, got ready for bed, and fell asleep with Leslie's picture burned into his brain.