"So you and your sister blackmail your brother." I looked up to see Aria standing over me on the school's main stairs.

"How do you know?" I said nastily.

"He told me…at Ian's funeral yesterday."

"He…he went without me?" I asked, finally softening, looking down guiltily.

"He felt like you hated him…he just got you back Madeline. Be nicer."

"I got mad because he was talking about Mike, and he was being a hypocrite." I tried to defend myself, but my heart wasn't in it. Aria was right, and after all- he was just trying to protect me.

"He told me…he seemed pretty down about it. He feels you and Ali were and are the perfect ones…he's struggling. Your parents don't even talk to him anymore. He thinks that your family lost the wrong kid. He thinks he should be in Ali's place…he thinks he may have killed her."

I put my things in my bag and stood up, cutting her short. "Look, Aria, I'm sorry. For how I treated you the other day…it's just…Mike is a sensitive topic for me."

"You won't even talk to Toby." She said smartly.

"I've been avoiding him, which is hard, because he knows me too well. He's my best friend." I admitted, with a smile on my face.

Jason shouldn't be in such a low place. Didn't he know how great he was? He'd turned his life around, took care of me, he was handsome and fit, smart…he was the best brother I could ask for now.

"Hey...want to come to my family dinner tomorrow? My mom invited Jason."

I hesitated. "Mike should be be there." she added quickly, but bit her lip, as if she couldn't trust that he would.

I nodded. "Okay. I'll be there. Sure. Anything I should bring?"

"I'm sure Jason has all the details already...I'll see you later Madeline."

"Bye." we walked down the stairs and turned in opposite directions of the parking lot in the direction of our houses.

By the time I got home, I saw Toby leaning against the railing on my porch, waiting for me.

"Toby." I stopped in my tracks, my backpack falling from my shoulder to my lower arm, and my keys were clutched tightly in my hand. He'd started working for the Hastings' and stopped working for my brother. He was working hard, and I knew for a fact that he'd started working on his plans a day early.

I regained my confidence and strode up to my door and let us in. "Always the overachiever." I shook my head at him.

"You're one to talk." He grumbled, but he had a grin on his face.

I closed the door behind us, and said, "Let me go put my stuff away. Make yourself at home." I gestured around, and dashed upstairs to throw my stuff on my bed.

I did that, and took a deep breath as I looked in the mirror and then I nodded, content that I didn't look too frazzled. I didn't like showing Toby when I was mess inside, not that he didn't see through my act. He knew me too well.

I descended the staircase, silently talking to myself about why he was here, what he wanted…

And then I was in front of him on the couch, and he spoke up after a minute of dreadful silence.

"You've been avoiding me." He said plainly.

"What?" I snapped my head up. "No I haven't."

He sighed. "Yes, you have." He groaned, it must've been because of the look I was giving him. "We're supposed to be best friends, Mads."

"We are!" I interjected.

He went on. "Then how come you're treating me how everyone in this town a few months ago used to treat me? Like I have the plague?"

I opened my mouth to protest, but he cut me off saying, "If you say you're not doing that, I'm walking out that door, and we'll never speak to each other again."

"Toby, don't. I need you. C'mon. I'm sorry…I've just been busy lately. You've been busy…"

"Okay, now give me the real reason." He prompted.

"I don't like how you know me so well you can guess my mood no matter what, and that you always try to help…I want to help myself…and I want to have other friends to rely on too…I lean on you too much, and I feel guilty." I slammed a hand over my mouth, angry at myself for spilling the beans.

"You feel like you have to literally hide from me to keep something from me?" he looked at me incredulously.

I didn't move, I kept my lips sealed tight, afraid to say any other incriminating things.

He laughed. "Mads, you're a piece of work. Come here." He held open his arms, and I nervously moved towards him, and he wrapped his arms around me.

"You don't have to hide okay. Now what's bugging you?"

I told him everything. How I was getting closer to Mike, and I was straying from Jason because of it…I was sobbing by the end of my story, and as usual, he was understanding and kind and helpful.

...

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