Craig paced the length of his small bedroom, pulling mindlessly at the drawstring of his pajama pants. He stopped and glanced at the glowing red numbers on his alarm clock. Almost twelve-thirty. Where were they? That evening, Craig had stopped by The Dot to pick up Spin, since Spinner's father had taken his car away after an argument. As he was sitting in the parking lot, he saw Manny and Parker walk out of the restaurant. Together. As in talking, laughing, practically holding hands. He'd almost leaped out of the car to demand what the hell they were doing, but by the time he had gotten over his initial shock and confusion, the pair had already gotten into Parker's car. So Craig had spent the last couple of hours consumed by curiosity, and, more importantly, rage.

Craig continued pacing, realizing he was just getting himself all worked up. It was impossible not get all worked up when Parker was in the picture. A perpetual screw-up, Parker had never exactly been the ideal brother. He'd never been much of a brother at all, a fact that still pissed Craig off and probably always would. Parker was just a fuck-up, plain and simple. When he wasn't high or looking for a way to get high, he wasn't doing anything at all.

A few minutes later, Craig heard a car-door slam outside and the faint sounds of footsteps on the grass. As soon as he heard the key turn in the lock, Craig went charging down the stairs. When Parker stepped into the foyer, Craig leaped in front of him. Parker gave his trademark lazy grin and shrugged off his jacket. "Hey, little bro. Isn't it past your bedtime?"

"Where have you been?" Craig demanded, placing his hands on his hips and giving his brother a suspicious glare. "I've been waiting up for you!"

"Gee, you're not my Dad," Parker pointed out lightly, rolling his eyes. "And I'm almost twenty. I really don't think I need my sixteen year old brother watching out for me."

"I'm seventeen."

"Right. I always forget. Hey, do you think we have any chocolate milk?" Parker asked, walking past Craig and into the kitchen. Craig followed. Parker didn't seem to even notice that Craig was angry about something. He was always so oblivious to everything. Did Craig really have to spell it out for him? "So, where we you again?"

"I was just out," Parker said in exasperation, clearly annoyed with the conversation. He opened the refrigerator door.

"Out with Manny?" Busted!

Silence. And then finally Parker stuck his head out of the refrigerator. "Actually, I was with Manny. Small world, isn't it?"

"How could you go out with Manny?" Craig exploded, waving his hands in the air. "She's my ex-girlfriend!"

Parker gave a careless shrug, like he hadn't just stabbed Craig in the back, which made Craig even angrier. "But she's your ex, right? You broke up with her. So I didn't really think you'd care much."

"B-but….I only broke up with her like, four days ago!" Craig stuttered, making more weird, meaningless gestures with his hands. Parker just watched him with a completely calm, disinterested look on his face. "I'm not even really over her yet! Plus, she's only sixteen."

"I'm twenty. And?"

"And I don't want you hanging around her," Craig said bluntly.

"Why not?"

There were so many reasons Manny shouldn't be around Parker. Craig just couldn't think of any at that exact moment, but he knew there were millions. Manny was too young, too emotional, too sweet for Parker. And Parker was….well, Parker was just Parker, which meant he just wasn't right for Manny at all. "Well, I don't want her to end up like you're last girlfriend," he blurted out. He immediately winced. He'd gone for a cheap shot, but it was all he could come up with.

Parker slammed his carton of chocolate milk down on the table. "You had to bring up Rachel, didn't you?"

Craig knew he was pushing it, but he couldn't stand the idea of his Manny with loser Parker. He just knew that Parker would hurt Manny, like he'd hurt everyone else in his life. "Well, don't blame me because you got high and drove your car off a bridge."

Parker was dead silent for a few minutes, and Craig immediately felt guilty about even bringing up a subject that bothered his brother so much. Awhile back, Parker and his current girlfriend, Rachel, had been driving out in the country, and, as usual, Parker had been completely wasted on beer and cocaine. He'd driven right off a bridge, killing Rachel and barely surviving the crash himself. It was the whole reason Parker had been sent to rehab in the first place. And Craig knew that the accident still haunted his brother, and that he thought about it every day of his life. Now Craig just felt like a snot-nosed jerk. Parker was so laid- back, almost too laid-back, and didn't get upset about much. Except Rachel. "Uh…I mean…uh…"

"You know, I paid for that, ok?" Parker snapped, taking a menacing step toward his brother. "You think I don't feel like shit for that? And I got help. I cleaned up. And you have no business even bringing that up, just because you're jealous I took your little girlfriend out. Manny's a big girl, Craig. I think she can make her own decisions. And she's not you're property or anything, so if I want to see her again, I will." He paused and smirked. "In fact, I think I'm definitely going to see her again. Got a problem with that?"

Craig grabbed Parker by the collar of his t-shirt, pulled him into the living room, and shoved him over the couch. Parker fell into the coffee table, busting his chin open. A minute later, he stood back up, blood dripping from his chin. Craig was panting, preparing himself for a big fight. Instead, Parker held up his hands. "Hey, calm down, man. We can settle this without fighting."

Craig took a deep breath. "You're right. Just stay away from Manny, and we won't have a problem."

Parker gently touched the cut on his chin and winced. "Like I said, you don't own Manny. And what if Manny doesn't want to stay away from me?"

"Boys, what's going on down there?" Albert called from upstairs, before Craig could reply.

"Nothing, Dad!" Parker called out, staring at his brother. "I just tripped. Good night!" Once their father had gone back to bed, Craig turned to Parker. "I don't know why you think you can just walk back into our lives. Not after you abandoned us."

"I didn't abandon you," Parker replied. "I was trying to save my life. I know Dad roughed you up a lot, but he did it to me ten times worse. I was the bad kid, and I got beat for it." He paused. "I didn't want to leave you. But I was only sixteen! What was I supposed to do with a thirteen year old? And we all know I didn't exactly do very well on my own." He sighed. "I didn't have a choice, Craig. I thought Dad was going to kill me."

"So you just left me to get wailed on?" Craig spit out, shaking his head. "Thanks, big bro."

"It wasn't like that," Parked said desperately. "I didn't know what to do. I really regret not doing something….but….Dad isn't like, hitting you again, is he? Now that you're spending more time around here…." Parker looked at him expectantly. Craig felt himself flush. So Parker wanted to play the hero now? Where was he three years ago when Craig really needed him? Craig thought about the incident the other night, when his Dad had beaten him. His Dad wasn't different, even though he said he had changed. But hey, he didn't need Parker. Craig could handle himself now.

"Look, just stay away from Manny, alright?" Craig said tiredly. The whole conversation was such a massive waste of time and energy. "And stay away from me, too, while you're at it." With that, Craig turned and ran up the stairs, silently wishing his brother had never reappeared in his life.

Riley practically skipped down the hall the next morning, humming quietly to herself. Usually Riley arrived to school half-awake, half-stoned, and fully pissed off. It was an accepted fact that Riley was not be touched, talked to, or approached at any time before eleven. But today, as disgusting as it was, Riley was actually smiling at people as she passed them and acting…friendly. If Riley could see herself now, she probably would have barfed. But Riley was feeling too wonderful to care. Everything had fallen into place, exactly as she had planned. But that wasn't surprising- Riley always got what she wanted. God, she loved being herself. It was just too fun.

Last night had been one insane, wonderful, orgasmic dream. After months of careful planning, scheming, and steadfast determination, she had broken Sean Cameron. Riley had never felt a high like this- the high of knowing that all her hard work had paid of beautifully. Hopefully, last night had only confirmed for Sean that the two of them made one hell of a couple. Sure, Sean had been a teeny, weenie bit drunk, and sort of an emotional wreck, but Riley pushed that thought aside. None of that really mattered. Right?

Right, Riley thought breezily, flipping her gleaming blonde hair over her shoulder. Despite that messy scene with Ellie and the abundance of alcohol, Sean had clearly wanted something to happen. Clearly. He'd given into all his desires, all his suppressed feelings-

Riley was too busy thinking that she collided headfirst into Emma Nelson. "Ow," she groaned, rubbing her forehead. "Head trauma."

"Oh, sorry," Emma said, although she sounded too preoccupied to mean it. She frowned and nibbled on her lip. "Oh, my, God! WhatifIgotthepart? UghwhatiffJaygotthepart? Oh,my,God, thatwouldbeawful!" she blurted out, staring at Riley in horror. The girl looked like she was on the verge of hyperventilating. Riley resisted the urge to slap her in the face. She absolutely hated when people started spazzing out like this. However, she was in a fabulous mood, she figured she might as well try to help. "Sorry, but I didn't catch any of that. Rewind, and breathe between words."

Emma sighed. Riley took a second to admire, in jealousy, how effortlessly pretty Emma was. She wasn't wearing any makeup, her hair was pulled back in a sloppy bun, and her outfit was so simple- a pair of faded jeans and a pink t-shirt. Yet, she looked completely put-together and gorgeous. Lucky bitch, Riley thought, even though she was just as pretty. Sean must like that whole "I-care-about-the-environment-more-than-my-looks" type of thing. "I'm sorry," Emma was saying. "It's just, I'm so stressed about this Romeo and Juliet thing. I don't even really want the part now. Especially not if Jay is Romeo. Can you believe he turned out to be really good? Gosh, I'm screwed." Emma slapped herself in the forehead with her notebook, moaning in despair.

Riley snatched the notebook away from her friend. "Hey, there's no need to physically abuse yourself. One, it's not the end of the world. Two, do you really think Jay actually got the part? The moron can barely even read, let alone memorize an entire Shakespeare play. Kwan will probably give him a really small part, so he doesn't completely ruin everything." She grabbed Emma's hand. "Come on. Kwan posted the cast list this morning. Let's go see if you got the part."

"But I don't want to know if I got the part," Emma whined as Riley dragged her down the hallway. Riley just rolled her eyes.

"Suck it up."

Once they reached the bulletin board, Emma lingered behind as Riley examined the list. "You're right," she said firmly. "You're completely right. I mean, there's nothing to worry about. I probably didn't even get Juliet, and Jay probably didn't even get Romeo."

"Huh-uh," Riley mumbled absently, reading over the list.

Emma tapped her foot. "No, you're so right. I mean, who in their right mind would cast Jay Hogart as Romeo?" she asked flippantly, forcing herself to laugh. It came out as more of a loud squawk. Riley turned from the list and stared at Emma uneasily. "Look, Emma…he wasn't that bad. And everything happens for a reason, right?"

"What are you talking about?" Emma demanded suspiciously. "Who got Juliet?"

"Oh, you did!" Riley said with fake enthusiasm, grabbing Emma's arm and giving it an excited squeeze. "You totally kicked everyone's ass. Wanna go celebrate? Let's go-"

"Hold on," Emma said, shoving Riley aside and checking out the list. Her mouth dropped open. "Jay got Romeo! B-but…this must be a mistake!"

Riley just shrugged and tried to hide her satisfied smile. Honestly, she was too busy still thinking about Sean to really worry about Emma's problems. She really wanted to tell Emma to just chill out, since she was being a major drama queen. It was just a dumb play, but Emma was acting like she and Jay were getting married or something. Riley's plan was going perfectly. Jay and Emma would be working together in the play, and the sexual tension would eventually explode. "Eh, shit happens. Look, you're going to be the star in the play. Who gives a fuck about Jay? He might as well be a piece of scenery. This is your play."

Just then, Jay swaggered up. He looked at the list over Emma's shoulder. Even though he was wearing his sunglasses, Riley could see that he was excited. "Oh, hey, look," he said casually. "Looks like we'll be starring in the play together." He laid a hand on Emma's shoulder. "You excited, Juliet?"

Emma shoved Jay's hand off her shoulder, snorted huffily, and stalked off down the hall. Riley smiled at Jay. "You must be happy."

Jay was trying to play it cool, as usual. And failing miserably. "Whatever," he muttered. "It's just a gay school play."

"No, I'm talking about you and Emma. This is your big chance to seduce her with you're…" She thought for a second. "Um…charm and wit." She knew Jay completely lacked both of those things.

"Yeah, right. That was just a one-night thing. You know all about that, right?"

"Shut up, Romeo. Or should I call thee "Boy in Tights?"

Jay just smirked cockily. "Did you even check out the list? You get to play the maid, and you get to wear that lovely fat suit." He walked off. "See ya later, fatty," he called back to her.

Riley stared at the list in shock. "What!"

Paige picked at her limp chef salad, only half-listening at the mindless chatter around her as she sat in the cafeteria during lunch. She looked up and saw Jimmy with his arm slung around Hazel's shoulder, and they were both laughing at something that must have been absolutely hysterical. Paige stared down at her salad in disgust. She knew that Jimmy made Hazel so happy, but it made Paige so miserable to see them together. She glanced over at Spinner, who, as usual, was stuffing his face with food and trying to talk at the same time. She loved him, she really, really did. But right now, she just really couldn't stand to be around him.

"Hey, Paige, you remember that, right?" Spin asked. Paige blinked and looked up. All eyes were staring expectantly at her. "What? Oh, yeah, sure. That was great."

"Hey, Paige, do you want the rest of that banana?" Spin asked a minute later, pointing to the half-eaten banana sitting on her plate.

"Yes," Paige snapped. "I just don't inhale my food like some people."

"Hey, I had to ask," Spin joked. "Stop being such a downer."

Paige sat up straighter, about to snap back at Spin and tell him to stop ignoring the fact that she was genuinely annoyed with him. But then she saw Jimmy staring at them in interest, and she told herself to just chill out. She was being kind of a downer. And she couldn't let Jimmy see that there was trouble in paradise. "Sorry, sweetie," Paige purred brightly. "Of course you can my banana."

"Spinner here needs his fuel for the big game tonight," Jimmy pointed out, flashing a completely irresistible smile.

"I'm so excited for the game!" Hazel squealed. "You guys are definitely going to win."

"And my best girl will be cheering me on," Jimmy said, kissing Hazel on the cheek. Paige tried to ignore the painful burst of jealousy in her stomach. For God's sake, she was sitting right here. It was like Jimmy was trying to hurt her. "And then after, we'll all have to go out and celebrate," Hazel suggested, taking a sip of her apple juice.

"Yeah!" Spin said. "Paige and I will definitely-"

"Uh, actually, I can't," Paige interrupted quickly.

"Why not?" Jimmy asked.

"I just can't," Paige said vaguely. You conceited bastard, she mentally added, watching as Jimmy ate a French-fry. She stabbed at her salad, wishing this hellish lunch would just be over already. Spin put his arm around her. "Oh, come on. It won't be fun-"

"Spinner, please," Paige said, pushing his arm off of her. Didn't he get the hint? "I said I can't." And with that, she stood up and grabbed her plate. "I have to go now." She turned and walked away, leaving Spinner baffled. Hazel sighed once Paige was gone. "She's been acting really weird lately."

"I know," Spin said sadly. "I don't know what it is."

Jimmy just silently ate his French-fries, because he was the only one who knew exactly why Paige was acting weird.

Riley walked out of sixth period, and immediately spotted Sean standing by his locker. She glanced around, and then casually strolled over to him. "Hey, there," Riley said huskily. "English is so incredibly boring. I thought Kwan would never shut up."

Sean looked at her. "Oh, hey, Riley." Not exactly the romantic greeting she was hoping for, but it would have to do. Besides, Sean had never been Mr. Romance. However, something in his voice told Riley she had to be careful. "So, how about last night? Pretty crazy, right?" She put a suggestive hand on his arm, and Sean practically recoiled from her touch. Ok, something was definitely not right.

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing," she replied coyly, stepping closer. "I just wanted to talk to you." Riley immediately wanted to bitch-slap herself for sounding so needy and desperate. Riley Corey didn't do desperate.

"I wanted to talk to you, too," Sean said slowly. He shut his locker. "Look, I think there was kind of a misunderstanding about last night. A big misunderstanding."

"Well, I didn't misunderstand anything. Did you misunderstand something?"

"Look, Riley….last night….didn't mean anything. You know how it is."

Riley felt her stomach clench. "No, why don't you tell me how it is," she answered coldly.

"Well…it was a mistake. Nothing should have happened."

"But something did happen," Riley said, anger creeping into her voice.

"Damnit, Riley, I was drunk. Something happened because I'd had too much to drink, and I was upset, and you were just there. You were just convenient."

Convenient? Convenient! Riley couldn't believe what she was hearing. She completely forgot about keeping her cool, and something snapped. "Convenient? Are you kidding me? Don't tell me you didn't feel something. Not after everything we've been through."

"Cut it out," Sean said, looking around. "Can you get any louder?"

"Probably!" Riley yelled, and Sean winced. He grabbed her arm and pulled her into a deserted classroom. Once they were inside, Sean rubbed his hands over his face. "Riley, you have to realize I…I don't care about you…like that."

"So you just like jerking me around?"

"Riley, you came onto me. You're always coming onto me. Sorry if you thought something different…but I'm not interested. I'm never going to be interested."

"You're such a spineless jerk," Riley barked out. "You think you and Emma are actually going to last? You think Emma's really going to stick around with you. Whatever."

"Emma and I will last," Sean said firmly. "Because Emma isn't like you. She's not fucking out of her mind."

Oh, really? Riley thought, looking at Sean in disgust. If Emma is so perfect, then why did she fuck your best friend? Riley was going to tell him. It would wipe that cocky smirk off his face, and would absolutely crush him. Riley wanted to hurt him like he had hurt her. "You think Emma is so perfect? Well, guess what?"

"What?"

Riley opened her mouth, and then snapped it shut. My God, she couldn't do it. What had happened to her? After years of perfecting her ultra-bitchiness, she had lost it. Or maybe a little bit of a good person was peeking through. No, that couldn't be it. Riley refused to believe that. Riley sighed. "Well….you're…you're just a pathetic loser."

"I'm pathetic? Who's chasing around a guy who doesn't even like them?"

Riley jutted out her chin defiantly. "It's not pathetic. I love you."

"How can you love me? You're too in love with yourself to actually love anyone else. You're the most selfish, self-serving person I've ever meant."

Riley turned and ran out of the room, tears building up in her eyes. She refused to let Sean Cameron see her cry. She didn't know which hurt worse. The fact that last night had just been a drunken escapade and not the romantic reunion she had thought. The realization that Riley actually didn't mean anything to Sean, a fact she hadn't been willing to admit until now. Or….

Or the fact that everything Sean had said about her was true.

"Are you sure my hair looks ok?" Paige asked Hazel for the fourth time, fluffing her hair with her fingertips. They were standing in the girls locker-room, decked out in their cheerleading uniforms. As captain, Paige knew she had to look better than everyone else for games. Not that she didn't anyway, but she usually put extra effort when they were performing. Honestly, tonight, Paige really care about her hair at all. It was just something to distract Hazel with so she wouldn't babble endlessly about Jimmy.

Hazel examined Paige's hair. "Um, it's a little puffy."

"Oh," Paige said, grabbing a brush. She ran it through her hair twice, and then set it down. "Whatever. I'm over my hair. Ok, gloss me." Hazel handed Paige her favorite cherry lip gloss, and Paige smeared it on her lips. Just then, Manny walked in, and Paige glared at her in the mirror. "Um, Hun, you're a bit late."

Manny shrugged. "Ok." She turned and walked off. Hazel rolled her eyes. "God, that girl needs an attitude adjustment.

"Well…." Paige said quietly, glancing around to make sure no one was listening. "She did just break up with Craig."

"No way!" Hazel said, wide-eyed. She looked a little disappointed, too. Hazel prided herself on being the queen of gossip, and hated when she didn't know something juicy before everyone else."I didn't even hear."

"It's very hush-hush," Paige informed her. "I hear she's kind of a mess. Not that she wasn't a mess before, but…you know how it is to be dumped. Especially after everything she put up with for Craig. The girl basically sacrificed her reputation for him. Love makes you do crazy things, I guess." She sighed and zipped up her makeup case. "By the way, how are things with you and Jimmy?"

"Oh, perfect," Hazel gushed. "Like, I want to marry him."

God, moving a little fast? Paige thought snottily, although she knew it was only the jealousy talking. "Wow. You really like him. But I thought…" Hazel looked at her, and Paige shrugged lightly. "I mean, didn't you say you were kind of worried about him?"

"Oh, the whole cheating thing," Hazel said, nodding. "I decided I was just paranoid." She paused, looking at Paige's sad face. "Why? Did you hear something?"

"It's probably nothing," Paige said slowly. Hazel stared at her, and she knew she had her eating out of the palm of her hand. She wasn't proud of it, but Paige basically controlled Hazel. "But I did hear some rumors…but their just rumors."

"Paige, you have to tell me!" Just then, the buzzer sounded outside, and the rest of the cheerleaders scurried to get onto the field. "Oh, we better go," Paige said, knowing full well she had Hazel questioning Jimmy's fidelity already. And she hadn't even really said anything! She was being such a bitch, trying to break up Jimmy and Hazel, but she couldn't stand watching them together. It was killing her, especially since….Jimmy was the father of her baby.

Spinner sat on the bench before the soccer game, wiggling his arms and twisting his neck around. He had to be loose and limber for the big game, since Coach had just told him he was starting. Jimmy walked up, watching Spinner. "Man, what are you doing?"

"Stretching," he said, rolling his eyes.

Jimmy raised his eyebrows. "Oh. It looks like you're having a seizure or something." He put his foot on the bench and leaned over to tie his shoe. "So, are you starting?"

"Yeah," Spin said. "You?" Why did he even bother to ask? Jimmy always started every game. He was the big man on campus, the best athlete in school. Spin frowned. "Hey, Jim? You don't know why Paige is acting funny, do you?"

"Why would I?" Jimmy said quickly. Spin shrugged.

"Well, I was just wondering if she said anything. Since you know, you two are working together as King and Queen on that committee thing." Spin knew it was a long shot, but he was desperate to know why Paige seemed to be shutting him out. He couldn't remember doing anything to actually piss her off. Spin scratched the back of his head and watched as the cheerleaders ran onto the field to do their little cheer before the game. There was Paige, in front, looking beautiful as she yelled out her cheers. Sometimes Spin still couldn't believe a girl as beautiful and special as Paige was actually dating him.

A few minutes later, the game started. Spin chased the ball down the field, and watched as Jimmy scored a goal. He went and patted Jimmy on the back, and that's when he saw his father sitting in the stands with Kendra. What was he doing here? Spin didn't want him here. Spin then noticed that his father had his hand on Kendra's thigh, and Kendra looked uncomfortable. God, it made Spin so sick. It made him ill because his father was such a sick fuck.

The game resumed, but Spinner was too preoccupied with watching his father and Kendra to really get into the game. He completely blew a shot at the goal. "Spin, what are you doing?" the Coach yelled out, throwing up his hands.

A few minutes later, he saw his father and Kendra get up and leave the stands together. Spin stopped completely, trying to watch where they were going. If he does anything…Spin thought, anger swelling up inside him. He felt ready to explode. Just then, a boy from the other team bumped into him. "Oh, sorry, man," the guy said. Spin whirled around. "Hey, you got a problem?" He reached out and shoved the kid.

"Whoa, calm down," the boy said, which only made Spin more infuriated. He grabbed the kid and punched him in the stomach. Thoughts of his father swirled through his head, and as he beat on the boy, he imagined his father's face. After a minute, the referee ran over and stopped them, pulling Spin and the kid apart. "This kid is crazy!" the boy yelled, touching his busted lip.

The referee pulled Spinner off the field and pushed him toward his bench. "Gavin," the Coach said angrily, shaking his head. "Hit the showers. You're suspended indefinitely."

Spin slinked off the field and past the cheerleaders. He looked up and saw Paige staring at him in wide-eyes shock. "What are you doing?" she mouthed to him. Spin just shook his head and kept walking. Great. He had disappointed his Coach, his team, his girlfriend.

But all he could think about was his father. And how he was going to get him back for everything he'd done.

Riley floated around on an inflatable raft in her backyard pool, silently cursing Sean Cameron in her head. She could have anyone, anywhere, anytime, but she was chasing after that idiot? She was one of the richest, prettiest, more interesting girls in the whole town- no, make that the whole fucking country- and she was spending her time thinking about Sean Cameron, the epitome of white trash? Sean was so beneath her it wasn't even funny. Riley sighed and splashed some water around. Yes, Sean may be poor and had no class, but she loved him for that. It was just part of what made him Sean. She was sick of dating the rich spoiled brat, who were too jaded to appreciate anything in life. Sean was humble and wasn't impressed by big houses or nice clothes….Oh, stop! Riley ordered herself. You're just making shit worse.

It was then that she noticed a teenage boy standing at the edge of the pool. She shielded her eyes with her hand and looked at him, but said nothing. Instead, she pointedly ignored him. Finally, the boy smiled at her. "Hey. I'm Matt."

Riley glanced at him. "Are you talking to me?"

"Yeah. I'm the new pool guy. And I'm going to do some gardening and maintenance. You know, stuff like that," he said cheerfully, waving a cleaning net in the air.

"Fascinating," Riley drawled, closing her eyes and tipping her face to the sun. She didn't want the guy to actually think they were having a conversation. He was cute, she thought, and usually she would start flirting insanely, but she wasn't in the mood. "What happened to Pablo?" she asked suddenly, sitting up. Now there was eye candy!

"He quit. Something about a sexual harassment lawsuit against your mother?"

"Oh, that," Riley said, waving a hand dismissively. "It'll never hold up in court." She lay back down. Matt began cleaning out the pool. "So, Riley-"

"How did you know my name?"

Matt smiled. "Oh, my Mom has been working for your family for years. You know, Rosa?" Riley stopped and tried to put a name to the face, but she couldn't. Was she really supposed to memorize the entire staff? "Don't tell anyone, but that's kind of how I got the job," he joked, winking. "Really?" Riley asked sarcastically. "Well, don't sell yourself short. I'm sure you're really talented."

Matt shrugged. "Yeah, I'm a real pro at cleaning out pools. It's my calling." He paused. "You know, I've heard a lot about you."

"It's all lies." She wasn't in the mood for more mindless chit-chat, so she rolled off the raft and into the water. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Mark," she said, purposefully using the wrong name. She dove under water, and swam to the other side of the pool to get out. When she resurfaced at the edge, she found Sean Cameron standing there, staring down at her. Oh, Jesus fuck, she thought miserably. He's probably here to rub salt in my already blistering wounds. "Oh. It's you," she said flatly.

"I came to apologize," Sean said. Riley rolled her eyes and hoisted herself out of the pool, making sure to get Sean a little wet. "You know, I was a little harsh at school. I didn't mean it." Riley brushed past him and grabbed a towel off a lounge chair. "Um…I'm apologizing here. Couldn't you at least acknowledge my existence?"

"Oh, gee, I'm sorry," Riley said sarcastically, toweling off her wet hair. "You were a massive jackass this afternoon, but I guess I'm supposed to fall all over myself as soon as you trespass onto my property to feed me some fake apology. Please, continue. You have my absolute undivided attention."

Sean blinked, although he wasn't surprised by Riley's bluntness. "Um….ok," he said, scratching the back of his head. He noticed Matt on the other side of the pool. "Uh…who's that guy?"

"A rather dear friend of the family," she lied. "Didn't you want to say something?"

"Yes. This afternoon, I was still kind of…confused about last night. I've been confused about a lot of things lately. The truth is I kind of freaked out because…I do still have feelings for you. I didn't want to admit it before. But I really miss being with you." He stopped and took a deep breath. "There. That's the truth."

"Are you saying that even though you treated me like shit, and said those awful things to me, you actually do feel something for me?" Don't get your hopes up, Riley warned herself. She heard a cough, and looked over at Matt, who was pretending to clean the pool, but was actually staring at them with intense interest. "Excuse me," she said. "But this is a private conversation." Matt just shrugged and walked off.

Sean scuffled his feet on the cement and nodded. "Yeah. I did some thinking. The only reason I was such an asshole to you was because…I was scared I might actually really like you. And I do."

Riley stared at him, unsure how to feel. She didn't want to be hurt again, but… "Sean Cameron…are you admitting that you like me? You really like me?" she teased, pinching him in the side. Sean cracked a smile and shrugged. "Look, you may drive me insane sometimes…ok, most times….but you're pretty special. You're snobby and rude and sarcastic….but you're special."

"Thanks…I think," Riley said slyly. "So….can we give us another shot?"

"But Emma…" Sean began, but Riley stepped up and silenced him with a slow kiss. "I don't want to think about her," Riley said, mostly because it made her feel incredibly guilty, which was kind of a new emotion for her. A new emotion she didn't like at all. "I want to think about us. But you know….me and you together are like an atomic bomb waiting to explode, Cameron."

Sean smirked. "I think I'll take my chances…" And he leaned in for another kiss…..

Manny walked into her bedroom and tore off her uncomfortable cheerleading uniform. She couldn't get it off fast enough. I should just quit, Manny thought, tossing the uniform onto the floor with all her other clothes. She flopped down on her bed and sighed. Cheerleading was too stressful. Not only did she have Paige on her back every ten seconds, all the other girls on the squad talked behind her back, and didn't make it a big secret, either.

Manny sat up and grabbed her purse. She reached inside and pulled out the small baggie of cocaine Parker had given her. She stared at it. Should she save it? She really wasn't sure.

Inevitably, her thoughts drifted back to Parker. She wasn't sure what to make of him, honestly. He said he'd cleaned up after rehab, but he'd still given her the cocaine, which didn't seem to make sense to Manny. She'd asked him about it, but he'd just laughed and ruffled her hair like she was some silly little girl. Maybe she was. After they had left The Dot, they'd driven to this shady house, where Parker had talked to some people privately for a few minutes, and then had dragged Manny out of there pretty fast. That had been strange. Then they had driven around, and had eventually parked at this little overlook up in the hills which was notorious for its make-out sessions. They hadn't done anything, though. Manny had wanted to, and she was pretty certain Parker had, too, but instead they had just talked. It had been…nice.

Ok, it had been much better than just nice. Parker was funny, sweet, and he had genuinely listened to her when she had talked. He hadn't just pretended to listen, like most people did. He was different than Craig in a lot of ways. Not as serious. Just really calm and in control, like he had everything together.

Ugh! Manny was falling for Parker. She didn't want to- she had already been hurt enough by a Manning, and she wasn't looking to get involved with another. But she couldn't help it….

The phone rang suddenly, and Manny jumped. She grabbed the phone. "Hello?"

"Manny?"

"Parker? Hey!" Oh, my, God, he called me! She thought with giddy excitement. "Um…what's up?"

"Nothing much," he said casually. "I hope you don't mind I called. To be honest, I kind of went through Craig's things until I found your number."

Manny laughed. Just then, she heard call-waiting. "Oh, Parker, I have another call."

"That's ok. I just wanted to ask you if you wanted to go out this weekend. Like….a real date. Dinner, movies, whatever you want."

Manny smiled into the phone, hugging her knees to her chest. "Great. Sounds perfect." They said good-bye, and Manny switched to the other line. "Hello?"

"Manny? It's Paige." Manny was slightly disappointed that she had given up her conversation with Parker for Paige, who treated her like some kind of bubonic plague. "Hi, Paige," Manny said. "What's up?"

"I need your help."

Manny was quiet. Helping Paige was pretty low on her list of priorities- somewhere down there between cleaning the garage and going to the dentist. However, Paige sounded desperate. "Um….I guess. I mean, I'm kind of busy…" she lied, but Paige cut her off.

"Great. Pick me up in fifteen minutes." And then Paige hung up.

Oh, damnit, Manny thought.

Manny pulled up to Paige's house in her mother's red mini-van. She'd only gotten her license a few weeks ago, so her mother hadn't exactly been jumping at the chance to lend her the car. Paige better appreciate what I went through to get this stupid car, she thought grumpily. Manny had simply thrown on a pair of sweatpants and a crappy t-shirt. Knowing Paige, this emergency is probably a shopping expedition to the mall. Paige ran out the front door, across the lawn, and jumped into the front seat. "I said fifteen minutes,and it was more like twenty,but that's ok," she said, strapping on her seatbelt. Manny rolled her eyes and started the van.

"So….am I taking you someplace? Is it someplace I can drop you off and then leave?" Manny asked hopefully. Paige was staring out the window. "Paige, where are we going?"

"We're going to the abortion clinic!" Paige burst out, throwing up her hands. "I needed you to take me to the abortion clinic."

"W-what?" Manny asked, gripping the steering wheel tightly. "You're not going to get an abortion, are you?" It was the stupidest question ever asked, but Manny couldn't believe that Paige was even considering an abortion.

"No, I'm just going to the clinic to meet some new people," Paige said, rolling her eyes. Manny thought the sarcasm was a little uncalled for.

"But…Paige, I really don't think an abortion is a good idea," Manny said hesitantly. Trust me, she thought, thinking of her own abortion, the one she still thought about every day. Paige rubbed her temples. "I can't believe Manny Santos is telling me how to run my life," she said, shaking her head.

"Then why did you call me, Paige?" Manny asked. "We're not exactly the bestest friends."

"Because I trust you," Paige admitted, her voice shaking. "You're the only one I told. I really need your help here, ok? And I'm getting an abortion. I can't have this baby." Her whole body was shaking. "Do you know what people would say? Do you know what my parents would do? What Spinner would do? You saw him today. There's something wrong with him, Manny. He'd fall apart if he knew I was having Jimmy's baby, and-" She stopped, realizing what she had just blurted out. Manny's eyes widened.

"Oh, my, God," Manny whispered. "Jimmy?"

Paige slumped down in her seat. "Yeah. I'm a slut, ok? I screwed my boyfriend's best friend, and I wasn't even smart enough to demand he use a condom. You say one word, Manny, and I swear to God-"

"Oh, save it, Paige," Manny said. "You don't intimidate me, ok? And why would I tell anyone?"

"Because it'll probably be the biggest gossip ever."

"Get over yourself," Manny said, staring at the road. "You're not that important, Paige."

"Do we go to the same school?" Paige sighed. "You know what, never mind. Just take me to the abortion clinic. Please."

"No."

"What?" Paige asked, sitting up. Manny took a deep breath. "I can't let you do this. You can find some other way to get there, but I'm not going to be a part of it. You're going to regret the abortion, Paige. It may be hard to keep the baby, but it won't be as hard waking up a week after the abortion and realizing what you just did. Trust me; it's the worst feeling ever. Think before you do this, Paige. Think long and hard, because you can't take it back."

From the way she was looking at her, Manny knew Paige knew she had had an abortion. But Manny didn't really care. Paige sat back, looking ashen. "Ok," she whispered. "Just take me home." And then she started crying. "Just take me home."

Manny turned the car around, watching as the coolest, most perfect girl in school started sobbing hysterically next to her.

Author's Note- Haven't updated in awhile, but I'm hoping to more since it's summer. For those who like Nothing Is Forever, a new chapter will be coming out soon. So read and review, tell me what you think!