Update on the coronavirus situation: My school is canceled for several weeks and we're not even allowed to leave the house here, so I'm planning on writing a lot over the weekend. Basically all I've been doing is reading and watching YouTube. What are you guys doing to pass the time? Hopefully reading this chapter makes your day a little bit less boring!

As the weather grew drearier with the prospect of winter, the mood inside the school refused to dampen. Or at least that's how Cinder felt. She didn't pay attention to the feelings of her classmates, to preoccupied with her own life now. It was like she and her new friends were living inside a bubble of happiness. A few weeks had passed since the play tryouts, and life had continued on as usual. But everything felt completely different for the girls. They had each other now.

They were all working harder than ever at school. The time to send in their college applications was drawing closer, and each person fretted about where to go and what to choose and what they wanted to do with their lives. Cress was the only one not stressed out. She had already received several full scholarships to top-notch computer science and programming-focused colleges. Instead of writing ten million essays, she was now devoting her time to creating the perfect project for the annual STEM Fair. Cress wasn't a bragger, but Scarlet had informed Cinder that Cress won every year and most of the time even advanced to nationals. When Cress wasn't hanging out with them, she was hooked to her laptop, phone, library book, or research paper, cramming as much information into her brain as possible and scribbling little notes in a notebook. Finally, Cinder had asked what her project was about that made her so fascinated, and Cress had responded with a dreamy smile on her face.

"The moon," she told her friend. "For my project, I'm going to invent a believable system for permanent human inhabitation on planetary bodies, considering, of course, the factors of complex topography, lunar poles, and the atmospherical dust environment." Cinder had blinked in confusion, trying to figure out what that meant, but before she could ask another question Cress had stuck her nose back in her book.

Cinder was focused on her work at the mechanic shop, as having a good letter of recommendation from her boss would significantly increase her chances of getting into a decent college where she could study engineering and mechanics. Since it was close to downtown, the girls stopped by frequently to say hello and deliver her lattes on early Saturday mornings. But it was Kai's visits she really looked forward to. Since the play tryouts, it had felt like he was withdrawing, although maybe she was just imagining it. His visits became few and far between, and when they passed in the hallways he barely acknowledged her. He has a girlfriend, she chastised herself. It was better that he stayed away from her. But she couldn't stop her heart from flip-flopping in her chest every time he joked around with her or made a thoughtful observation about something that she would have never thought of.

The Robotics Club was still hard at work on their project. Wanting nothing more than to beat their longtime rivals at the competition this year, the team threw themselves into designing, planning, coding, programming, and, Cinder's favorite activity, building. All the kids were thrilled when Cinder, a new member, revealed her talent for putting parts together and making sure everything worked in exactly the right way. "We're going to win, with you in the club!" several people told her.

Scarlet was still not thrilled about being part of the school musical, but her friends begged her not to quit. They hadn't gotten the results of the audition yet, but she was dreading them. She would bet just about anything that all the popular kids had gotten the main roles and Scarlet and her friends would be in the chorus.

But there was another upside to being part of this program. Ever since the tryout, Wolf had been on friendly terms with her, smiling and greeting her in the hallways. He had even come up to their table at lunch, trembling, to ask her a question about the science homework. They had scooted to the end of the table together, to the surprise of her friends, and she had pointed out some places in the homework where he had made mistakes. After finishing with the homework much too quickly for their liking, they had said an awkward goodbye and rejoined their personal groups - Scarlet, with her friends, and Wolf, with his group of boys. She didn't think of them as a fierce, terrifying wolf pack anymore. Now that she had lost all inklings of fear and suspicion against Wolf, she had found he had quite a polite personality and was a very interesting friend.

She could tell her friends were whispering behind her back at her strange choice of a friend, but she didn't care. Once they got to know Wolf better, they would realize that he wasn't the gangster bad boy everyone thought he was.

Jacin could tell that Winter was getting better. With her new friends, she seemed to feel happier and more relaxed. She rarely had mental breakdowns anymore. Every day after school, he no longer had to shuttle her back to her house after a fit of crazy so that there would be nothing to upset her. Now, they could roam the streets of shops in downtown Commonwealth City every day. Winter quickly established all her "favorite" places - pointing them out as they passed, "Oh, yeah, that's my favorite coffee shop," - as if they had walked these streets their entire lives rather than a single lousy week. But he didn't point this out to her. He was just as eager to explore as she was, and he was so grateful that she was getting better that he treated her to jewelry and snacks and whatever she wanted.

Now that they were establishing a somewhat normal social life, Jacin was starting to realize how closed off he had been before. He had never really had friends, thinking they would get in the way of protecting Winter. Because Winter always had to come first. He would do anything for her. He couldn't afford to have any kind of social life for the fear that she would have a breakdown when he wasn't there. He always had to be there.

Scarlet, the fierce motorcycle-driving waitress and the only one he somewhat trusted out of Winter's new group, had picked up on his defensive vibes quickly. "Look, I can tell you're used to protecting Winter all the time," she had said after pulling him aside, looking him right in the eyes," And you're reluctant to give that job to anyone else, or even drop a tiny bit of the burden. But we want to be friends with Winter. We care for her. You can relax. Please trust us."

Jacin had given the appropriate response: a tight smile, a thank-you and a vague comment about how yes, he would trust them to handle Winter at times. But on the inside, he knew that he could never lift the heavy burden even a tiny bit. Not ever. Winter was the most important thing in his life, and he would not let anything happen to her. So much had happened to her already. The murder of her beloved big brother, Evret Hayle had just been the starting line in a devastating chain of events. The suicide of her parents, the suing against Levana for manipulating her boyfriend, the court appeal in which the judge declared Levana not guilty and even granted her temporary custody over Winter since she was the only person available to take her in. Soon after, Winter's life had been uprooted when she moved in with Levana, not within walking distance of Jacin's house anymore, and was completely neglected. Jacin didn't know the full story, but from what Winter had told him, she had been completely neglected and not given food or even a bed as well as constantly abused by Levana's male friends. Just thinking about that period in her life made him clench his fists with a burning desire to clamp them around that girl's throat.

He couldn't remember when he had first started catching feelings for her. Maybe it was the moment they first met, when she had raced up to him excitedly the second he stepped foot into the preschool classroom, saying, "Hey! The new boy can be the guard! I call being the princess!" for their game of make-believe. That had been back when they were young and innocent and carefree, and none of the traumatic events had happened to Winter yet. Maybe it was the moment when they were seven and he hadn't been invited to a classmate's Halloween party, so he been sitting at home, moping and without a costume before Winter stormed in like a tiny tornado and practically shoved a homemade Prince Charming costume onto his body. He could still remember the exact expression on her face, glowing with affection as she twirled around in her frilly Snow White costume, grabbing his hand and forcing him to twirl with her. Maybe it was the moment when they were twelve and Jacin had been sent to his room as a punishment for running around with Winter after school when he was supposed to be studying, and Winter had snuck out at night to come to visit him. The mischievous expression on her face coupled with the moonlight catching the glint in her eyes was preserved in his memory, a single happy moment.

It didn't really matter when it had happened. All Jacin knew was that he was completely, totally in love with his childhood best friend.

At lunchtime, all five of them were seated comfortably at their table in the back of the cafeteria. Jacin had never been happy about sitting with Levana and her friends, but Winter seemed to think she was obliged to, and wherever she went, he went too. So he was much more comfortable at this table, even though he was the only boy and didn't talk to the others much. It made him pleased to see Winter finally opening up and connecting with friends other than him.

"Did you guys here there's an outbreak of chickenpox near Commonwealth City?" Scarlet asked the others. "Twenty people have died already."

"That's terrible!" gasped Cress. She became thoughtful. "Maybe that could be my project next year. How to stop the fast spread of viruses."

"I just hope it doesn't reach here," Cinder shuddered.

"Ring around the rosie, pockets full of posy," Winter sang idly, staring into the distance. Jacin shivered at the eerie sound of her voice. She stopped singing. "The plague song."

Cinder smiled wistfully. "That was my favorite nursery rhyme when I was a kid."

A/N: Do you guys remember the first scene in Cinder where she is watching a bunch of kids singing this song and she laughs because they're getting in the way of all the other shoppers? Just one of those small tie-ins that I like using in this story.

"The SnowBall is coming up soon, too," said Cress. "I saw the poster on the bulletin board in the hallway."

Scarlet began to roll her eyes, but Cinder interrupted. "What do you mean, the snowball?" she asked in confusion.

Winter, Scarlet, and Cress all laughed. "I always forget that you're new here, Cinder," said Scarlet. "It's a Commonwealth High School tradition. I guess it should be Snow space Ball, but everyone just calls it the SnowBall."

"Oh, I get it now. So it's a ball in winter?"

"Yup. Right after the musical. It's like a mid-year celebration," Scarlet explained. "But it's basically just a less-important version of prom. Everyone makes a huge deal about who's going with who and they even elect a Snow Queen and Ice King."

Cinder burst out into guffaws. "I would rather die than be given the title of Snow Queen," she snorted. "And Ice King? That's even worse!"

"Yeah, it is pretty ridiculous," said Cress. Her eyes became dreamy. "But I still like dressing up! We absolutely have to go dress shopping together."

Scarlet stared at her incredulously. "Cress, there's no way we're going. I hate dresses. And none of us would have a date."

"Oh, yes we are going!" Cress insisted. "I haven't ever gone before because I didn't have anyone to go with. But now we have friends! We can be a friend-date."

Cinder sighed. "I'm not the biggest fan of dresses..." When Cress made her blue eyes go huge and stuck out her lip, Cinder laughed. "But you know I can't resist puppy-dog eyes. I'm fine with going. I don't really care."

"Winter?" Cress turned hopefully to her.

Winter gave the dazzling smile that she usually only reserved for Jacin. Her dark curls bobbed fervently as she nodded her head. "I love to dress up too. Plus, Jacin can be my date." She put an arm around his shoulders and tugged him closer, smiling at him. They had touched each other and hugged and even slept together since they were little kids, but suddenly it felt awkward. Jacin forced himself to smile back, trying not to concentrate on how her fingers brushed the bare skin above his unbuttoned collar and the way their legs pressed together.

Scarlet sighed reluctantly. "I guess. I'm pretty sure that all musical cast members are required to go so that everyone can celebrate them. Because we are going to do so fabulous in the play," she added sarcastically.

"Come on, we'll be fine," Cress said breezily. "Sounds like we have a plan! I'm actually excited for the SnowBall this year."

Peony hadn't come to school that day because she had woken up feeling sick. Cinder decided to tell her boss that she couldn't come to work that day so that she could go home and look after her sister. She knew that her stepmother was at home, claiming to be looking after Peony, but she doubted Adri was very competent in medicine.

As soon as she arrived at the Phoenix Tower Apartments, she went straight up to Peony's bedroom. Laying a cool washcloth on Peony's forehead, Adri glared at her. "What are you doing here? Skipping out of work, I assume, Cinder."

Cinder glared. "It's not like you have a job, Adri. Back off."

Looking highly affronted, Adri put her fingers to her mouth in surprise and indignation. "Excuse me, cyborg, but I will not be spoken to in that way!"

Flinching, Cinder pushed past her and went to Peony's bedside. "Cyborg" was something that Adri hadn't called her in years. It was a term that described a person who had metal prostheses instead of human limbs like her. Calling her that was one of Adri's best, most hurtful tactics to get Cinder to listen.

Not this time, however. Cinder had eyes for only Peony. "You feeling okay?"

Peony managed a smile. "Much better than I did this morning." Feeling Adri's sullen glare, Peony turned to her mother. "Mom, can you leave for a second? I want to talk to Cinder." Adri pursed her lips but ultimately decided that responding to her daughter's wishes was more important than her feud with her ward. She had always disapproved of her Peony and Cinder's relationship, thinking that Cinder had a bad influence on her daughter.

The second her mother left the room, Peony let out a long, drawn-out sigh and propped herself higher up on the pillows. "She's been driving me crazy," sighed her sister. "I'm sure all I have is a little cold, but she's making a huge deal out of it. Peony, can I get you this? Peony, you need to eat something. Peony, is it too cold in here?" she mimicked her mother in a high, snooty voice. Cinder laughed. "Anyway, how's your day been?"

Cinder told her all about the upcoming SnowBall. This boosted Peony's spirits a lot. "I can't wait!" her sister gushed. "It'll be so much fun to get dresses and do our hair and our makeup!"

"You should meet my friend Cress," Cinder told her affectionately. "You two have a lot in common." She leaned down and stroked Peony's soft black hair.

"Cinder," Peony whispered suddenly. Started, Cinder leaned forward to hear her better.

"I want to go somewhere," she said softly. Cinder was confused.

"You can't leave the house, you're sick."

"Exactly!" her sister wailed, louder. "I'm stuck in this house and I'm so bored. I'm not even that sick. I feel fine! I just need to get away from mom."

That, Cinder could relate to. "All right," she said slowly. "Where do you want to go?"

This is probably one of my favorite chapters so far. I spent two hours writing it, so if you liked it please review and follow this story!