She distinctly tasted copper in her mouth.

Maddie pressed a finger to the corner of her lips, bemused that she felt a certain wetness pooling there. Detaching her finger from her lips, she blinked at the drop of blood that was planted on her digit. Her tongue instinctively went to that bruised corner, licking the spot, causing a small sting to erupt there. She didn't think they kissed that hard.

The closed door in front of her was the only barrier between her and the blonde boy inside the room. She knew how to pick locks, she could storm in there right now and demand what the hell that was about. But then he'd look at her with those lusty, blue eyes of his and she'd forget why she had gone in there in the first place. She'd lose all thoughts that were even close to being sensible or reasonable, and she would react without really thinking. And then she'd figure out that the only thing she wanted to demand from him was another kiss.

The pale girl stared at the door for another moment before she backtracked slowly, exiting the level. She didn't know where she was heading, but she was letting go of all attachments to her mind and just going. It might have been thirty minutes, or it might have been five. She kept walking until she reached the steps that led up to the front Spenser and she allowed her form to drop down the last of the stone steps.

At that moment, she remembered Katherine's earlier words firing back at her.

"How can you not be into him?"

And then her friend hinted other clues.

"Very true. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I do believe he's changing for you."

"Wrong." When Katherine sent her a heated look, Maddie merely shrugged, giving her an award-winning smile. "You did say to correct you if you're wrong."

"Maddie, are you blind? Reid's a totally different person now than he was before he met you."

She made an irritated noise, pressing the heel of her hand to her forehead. This was what happened when she thought too much on one thing. Maddie remembered that during the first few weeks of school, she had pointedly told Katherine that she would not fall for the playboy of Spenser. She even denied Katherine's accusations of her secretly liking Reid. Maddie had been the only girl able to resist Reid Garwin's charms.

Not anymore.

Damn.

She liked him.

She couldn't wait to tell her loving, eco-friendly scientists of parents that she had fallen for a rich, tattooed all over, bad-ass rebel that was also known to be a notorious player with the ladies. Oh, did she forget to mention that he was a warlock?

A tap on her shoulder shook her. "Maddie?"

Maddie fought the urge to jump. If she had, she would have been kissing the ground by now. "Tyler, don't do that," she told him, hand repeatedly hitting her temple.

"Sorry," Tyler chuckled, plopping himself down next to her.

"Make yourself at home."

He would have laughed, if wasn't for the tiredness that was etched into her tone. The youngest Son sobered, stretching out until he lay sprawled out on the steps. "Reid told me what happened," he looked up at the girl.

"He told you?" A brow lifted.

"Well, I forced it out of him."

"You guys are like girls," Maddie laughed, ignoring the indignant look on Tyler's face. "Katherine does the same thing to me whenever she wants to know something," her eyes narrowed when the boy straightened up at the mentioning of Katherine's name. "Tyler, do you like her?"

Tyler blushed. "I barely know her."

"So?"

"Anyway," he cut in, feeling more heat creep up to his cheeks, "don't you want to know why Reid's been distant with you lately?"

"Is he like bipolar or something? Because one moment he's sweet and charming, and the next he's cold."

"He's got a reason for acting like that."

Maddie turned to him. "Like what?" she asked, and when Tyler hesitated, she pressed the subject further, "Come on, Tyler. You can tell me."

A minute passed. Then two. "Do not tell Reid I told you," he muttered, leaning his head closer to hers. His voice was low and quiet, as though he feared someone would be nearby to overhear them, but it was clear that they were the only two people outside the campus at the moment. "He would kill me if he knew I told you. What I say cannot be repeated to anyone else."

"Okay," she nodded. She wouldn't tell if it was this serious.

Tyler sighed. "Reid's afraid of getting hurt."

A crease formed between her brows at the information. "Huh?" was all she could manage. That was odd. Reid was afraid of getting hurt? The way the blonde Son carried himself, it was as though he wasn't afraid of anything.

"He is. I know it doesn't seem like he is, but it's the truth," Tyler said, blue eyes focused on the ground. He knew Reid better than anyone else. He was his best friend after all. "When he was younger, his father had hurt him. It was almost too many times to keep count of."

Maddie's butterscotch eyes widened. "His father abused him?"

"Not in the way you think. His father was never around to care for Reid. Whenever it was Reid's birthday, his father would promise to be there, but he wouldn't hold that promise. His father would never come, and the only thing Reid received from him was a birthday card and some expensive toy. Mr. Garwin would promise to come and Reid would always wait for him. This happened so often, you would have thought that Reid stopped believing in him."

"But he still waited?" Maddie's heart tendered at the thought of a sad, younger Reid.

"He still waited," Tyler repeated, nodding. "Reid finally understood what was going on when he turned ten. He didn't let anyone else in after that."

"What about his mom?"

"Oh, he loves his mother. She was probably the only person that could get him to listen," Tyler smiled fondly, memories of their childhood coming back to him. "She's the only person he had respect for. But after the things his father had said and done, he left his mother out sometimes," he stared back at Maddie, his eyes boring into hers. "With Reid acting the way he is, I understand how you would feel, but don't give up on him. You may not realize this, but you've changed him."

She didn't falter. "I know," she replied, and at Tyler's surprised expression, she explained, "Katherine tells me the same thing everyday."

"Really?"

"Why the sudden interest? Is it because I mentioned Katherine?"

Tyler shook his head, a chuckle managing to escape from him. "Nothing gets past you, Maddie."

"You're right," Maddie agreed, eyes brightening in her own sense of awe.

"Reid's happier when he's around you." Tyler's words pierced her.

Now it was her turn to blush.

"You like him," he observed, a shit-eating plastered on his face.

"Yeah," Maddie mumbled. "I just figured it out today."

"Then it all works out then."

"You know what this reminds me of? A fairytale, only the roles are switched. It's like Reid's the damsel in distress, needing to be saved, and I'm his Prince Charming or something like that."

Tyler snorted before he burst out laughing. "Don't tell that to Reid," he gasped out, holding his side. "What I'd give to see his face when he finds out he's being referred to a damsel in distress," his face turned serious again, mouth setting into a frown. "I think you can save him."

"Didn't I promise you I would?"

"It'll be hard. He'll push you away at first. Maybe you can stop his addiction as well."

"To power?"

"Yeah."

Maddie was horrified at the thought. She remembered all she was told that they when they had taken her to the colony house. Addiction meant too much power, and that also meant aging faster. She didn't know Reid as an addict. Nevertheless, she was going to stop this addiction.

She'd be damned if Reid aged faster than her ninety-five year old grandpa did.

"Hey, Maddie!"

The golden-eyed girl turned around, smiling at who she saw. "Hi, Michael."

The tall boy in front of her grinned down at her. Michael Shepherd was a good-looking boy with old-fashioned, yet handsome features. His brunette hair fell over his green eyes and it slightly curled at the ends, the grin he had on stretched out his strong jaw. His build was defined and he had strong arms. He was the captain of the baseball team. He stood before her, his hands shoveled into the pockets of the black slacks of Spenser's uniform. She could see his baseball teammates, also his friends, standing not too far away, identical smiles on their faces.

Michael shuffled his feet in a nervous manner. "Erm, how are you?"

"I'm fine," she responded, head tilted up. "How are you?"

"I'm good, everything's good," he stopped himself from rambling. Maddie had to bite back a grin. A nervous Michael was actually quite sweet to look at. When he saw Maddie's bright face, his nerves calmed down a bit. "Today's Friday," he blurted out.

He wanted to slap himself. Seriously? Today's Friday?

But Maddie thought otherwise. She thought it was adorable. "I'm well aware of that," she bit her lip, preventing another smile. She didn't want to make him feel even worse.

"So, what do you usually do on Fridays?"

Smooth. Real smooth.

"I usually go to Nicky's." Since she became friends with the Sons, they forced her to go, along with Katherine, Sarah, and Kate.

"All the time?"

"Why?"

"I was wondering if…" he trailed off, an inner turmoil fighting within him.

"If…?" she prodded.

Michael tapped his foot against the ground, a hopeful look on his face. "I was wondering if," he started again, "you'd go out with me tonight?"

"Oh, I—" she stopped in her sentence. She hadn't been expecting that.

"I'm sorry it's on short notice," he apologized swiftly, staring solemnly at her.

"No, it's alright," Maddie reassured. "It's just—um, well…how do I say this?" she added, the last part more to herself rather than to Michael.

His shoulders slumped forward. "You're busy."

Maddie looked at him thoughtfully. "Kind of, but not really. I mean, I can go to Nicky's anytime. It has nothing to do with you, Brandon, I swear. This is all me."

"You like someone else, don't you?"

"Am I that obvious?"

Michael started to laugh. "Maybe just a little."

She let out a chuckle, joining in on his laughter. "I really am sorry."

"Nah," he shook his head, arguing with her. "Don't be. I was just a little too late," he smiled at her, letting her know that his feelings weren't hurt. "He's a lucky guy."

Maddie smiled. "Thank you."

"Well, isn't this a pretty picture?"

She froze at the voice. Reid.

"Garwin," Michael acknowledged, nodding his head slowly at the blonde boy, "do you need something?"

"Nope." His mouth popped at the 'p'.

Michael met the sudden intruder's blue eyes, and he was surprised to find possessiveness there. It was clearly there, surrounded by the calm ire of his. He had known that Garwin had become a close friend of Maddie's, but the term 'possessiveness' didn't' exactly fit on friendly terms. They seemed more than that. Could it be that Garwin actually held some feelings over her? Was it possible that Garwin was the lucky guy he had mentioned earlier?

"I'll see you later then?" he turned to Maddie.

"See you later."

She watched as the captain of the baseball team turned around in his track, making his way back to his friends. Michael shoved his hands into his pockets again, only shrugging at his teammates. At the gesture, the boys either groaned or put on sympathetic faces for their captain. For some reason, Maddie found the notion rather amusing, when she should have been feeling bad for turning a guy down. That feeling left, however, as she whirled to face Reid.

"What's wrong with you?" She wasn't angry. Or at least, she tried not to sound angry. This was the first time in days Reid was initiating to talk with her first, and not the other way around.

His eyes narrowed at her in accusation. "Did I embarrass you in front of your little boyfriend? Oh, cry me a fucking river," he spat lowly.

"He's not my boyfriend," she instantly responded.

"You like him," Reid tilted his head, peering closer to look at her. The closer he was, the more Maddie could see the darkness in his eyes. "You actually like him."

"Wha—like—" she sputtered in surprise. "We barely know each other! How can I like him? You know what; I'm the last person here that needs to explain anything."

"Don't try to change the subject."

"What are we even talking about?" She had managed to get herself confused. "First you're all nice to me, and then you're a pervert, then you avoid me, then you kiss me, and now you're here yelling at me? Seriously, Reid, do you have a personality disorder?"

Reid was tense at her words. Because all of it was right. "So just because I'm suddenly unavailable means that you can run to some other boy's arms? You move quickly, don't you?"

"Is that what this is about?" Maddie let out a laugh, eyes trained to the ceiling of the hallway. "You're jealous. You're jealous of Michael."

"I'm not jealous of Shepherd," his head snapped up, his voice unsteady as it was angry.

Maddie bit the inside of her cheek, eyes boring into his. "So you don't mind if I go out with Michael then?"

His jaw clenched. She could see it. "No," he finally managed out.

That was a lie.

He knew it.

She knew it.

"Stop lying," Maddie demanded from him. "It's really easy. All you have to do is tell me you were jealous."

"I won't tell you that because I'm not." Another lie.

"Liar," she stated. Something flickered in her butterscotch-colored eyes. "I knew you were many things, Reid. I just didn't think you'd be a liar as well."

His knuckles turned white. God, he wanted to punch something. "You should have known what you were getting yourself into."

You really are my damsel in distress, Maddie suddenly realized, looking past the flame in his cerulean eyes. You do need to be saved. Why can't you just ask for help?

"I don't want to fight with you," she finally told him, looking at his handsome, angry face.

That made him even more furious. She was already holding up the white flag. That wasn't like her at all. Reid glared at her with hard eyes, assessing her face, trying to detect anything. It unnerved him to find out that there was nothing. He shook his head to himself, thinking how insane this all was. He didn't say anything more to her. He was just so full of anger. He was angry at the fact that he was angry at her, and that made absolutely no sense. He turned away from her abruptly, not sparing her another glance.

He didn't notice or feel the eyes trained on his back. Maddie stared after him solemnly, a determined expression fixed onto her pale face.

She would save him. She didn't care how she'd do it, but she would.

She'd be his Prince Charming.

Day turned into night and exactly at seven-fifteen on the dot, Maddie strolled into Nicky's. She was always the last arrival of her group to come in, seeing as she liked to walk to the bar place, rather than drive there. Her friends were already pre-occupied on what they always did, so that left her wondering what to do.

A boy appeared to the right of her side. He had sandy brown hair, matched with a pair of sea-green eyes. He had a nice face. His name was Chase Collins. Maddie vaguely remembered him transferring in the same time Sarah did.

"I'm Chase," he grinned, holding out his hand.

Maddie took it, shaking it with a gentle squeeze. "Maddie. So, do you like Spenser so far?"

"Oh, definitely," he nodded. "The campus is amazing."

"That's exactly what I thought the first time I saw this place."

"There you are!" a new voice called out to her. "I've been looking for you everywhere! You know, you should get a car, Maddie. You're always late for everything."

"Hey, Katherine," Maddie smiled blithely.

Katherine appeared at the pale girl's side. "Chase," she smiled in a greeting at the boy.

"How 'bout I buy you girls some drinks?" he offered, head tilted over at the bar. "My treat."

"What a gentleman," Katherine mused, elbow digging into Maddie's side to prove her point.

"Agreed," Maddie replied smoothly, as the three headed over to the bar.

As she walked, something in the distance caught her eye. Sitting at a table a distant away, Reid sat, his face set in its usual boredom. On his lap sat a perky girl, with bouncy, blonde curls streaming down her face and down her back. She was nuzzling his neck closely, her fingers running up and down his forearm. Even though Reid's face was that of indifference, it still stung to see him with another girl.

Maddie quickly turned away right at the moment his eyes found hers. She made a beeline towards the bar, sitting herself on the stool on Katherine's side. She ordered a nice glass of cool water, making sure to tell the server to add a couple pounds of cold ice in there.

"Are you hot, Maddie?" Katherine asked with a smirk, observing the glass of clear water with mountains of crushed ice in there. "Pun intended."

"Har har," Maddie grumbled, drowning herself in the water.

Katherine turned to Chase after taking a sip of her drink. "What school did you transfer from?"

"Hastings," Chase replied. "I'd have to say Spenser is much more advanced."

"It's the top high school in all Massachusetts," Katherine spoke casually. At Chase's inquiring look and at Maddie's raised brow, she shrugged. "What? Can't I be prideful of my school?"

Chase only laughed, but Maddie didn't answer. She risked another peek in that direction, looking over her shoulder.

The curly blonde's lips were attached to Reid's, tongues clashing heavily. Her eyes trailed to where his hands were, watching as he gripped the curly blonde's thigh demurely. Maddie hid herself behind her glass of water when Reid pulled both of them to their feet. The curly blonde haired girl immediately buried herself at Reid's side, a smug grin on her face as if telling everyone who was watching that she was the luckiest girl in the world.

Maddie averted her gaze, taking another gulp of her water when Reid's head snapped in her direction. A muscle clenched in her jaw when she sensed his eyes on her, taking her in. She can vaguely hear Katherine and Chase conversing beside her, but paid no attention to it. When she looked back up again, both Reid and the blonde girl had disappeared.

Why did Reid keep looking over in her direction?

Was he trying to make her jealous?

Maddie snorted at the idea. They were never the ideal couple to begin with anyhow. All they did was share a simple kiss outside his dorm room. She bet he's probably done that with many other girls before she was in the picture. Still, she felt something snap inside of her, just by watching that curly blonde girl throw herself at Reid.

Maybe she should move back to Dillon. It may have been boring there, but at least there wasn't any drama.

Outside in the alleyway, Reid eased a willing blonde to the wall. His hands started snaking under her shirt, nipping onto her neck. Immediately, something bothered him. This girl's neck reeked of too much perfume. It wasn't natural. It didn't smell like honey and apples like…her neck. Her neck smelled natural— he'd know. He ignored that budding feeling in his gut. Why was he thinking about her in a time like this? Why should he care? The girl's probably already scheduled a date with that Shepherd guy.

The thought of that made his blood boil hard, but the kisses from the girl beneath him made him forget. This girl, whatever her name was, kissed him without hesitation. It was then he noticed that she had too much of that glossy stuff on her lips. Normally, this wouldn't have bothered him since he's kissed many girls with that same glossy thing, but this time, it got to him. Reid coveted for smooth lips, one that was delicately pink and untouched.

Again, that led to thinking about her.

His hand trailed over to the blonde girl's back, fingering the strap that held her bra together. Another hand reached up and buried itself in her blonde, curly tresses. As his hand glided over the girl's hair strands, he noticed they weren't as soft as they looked. The hair was dry, indicating that it was either bleached or dyed unnaturally. It didn't have a shiny complexion and it didn't feel like silk.

This girl had too much make-up in her face. Sure, it might have enhanced her features more, and it might have turned on a couple of guys, but now that Reid thought about it, unnecessary make-up made her look like a clown. The girl was oddly proportioned too. Her over-sized breasts looked awkward with her slender waist. Her big brown eyes looked up at him with lush, surrounded by mascara-coated eyelashes. With a look like that, he would have taken her already, no questions asked. But he wasn't attracted to brown eyes.

He wanted gold eyes. He wanted a natural face. He wanted a girl who smelled of honey and apples instead of expensive perfume. He wanted a pale complexion instead of one that was spray-tanned. He wanted a girl with a thin, fragile-like body—one he could easily hold and protect, instead of one that was shaped like a curvy battle axe.

He wanted something real, not something that was fake all over.

"Stop," he growled, pushing himself away from the wall, away from her. He cursed to himself quietly, wiping his mouth with the edge of his sleeve.

"What's wrong?" the girl asked, oblivious to how irritated Reid was. Her glossy lips formed into a pout, as her eyes sultrily pleaded with Reid. "We were having fun," she murmured making a grab for his arm.

Reid shifted away from her. "Not in the mood. Sorry," he winced at how harsh he sounded. After all, it wasn't fully the blonde girl's fault. He had a hand in this, readily seducing her when he wanted to.

He left the blonde girl at the wall, as she struggled to hold her shirt together. When he entered Nicky's again, he went for Tyler. Judging by the dark look in the blonde boy's eyes, Tyler didn't say anything. It was like a wordless connection between them. Nodding, the two boys left for the pool table.

"Wow," Katherine gasped for breath, coming out of a laughing fit. "Jeez, Maddie!"

Maddie let out a laugh as she looked down modestly. "It's the truth."

Chase was laughing also. "You really went to a gay bar?"

"Yep," Maddie looked a bit amused by the idea, but it had actually happened in her life. "One of my friends was gay at the time, and she wanted to try to go to a gay bar. She didn't want to go alone, so I offered to go with her."

"Offered?" Katherine repeated with a snort. "Yeah, that sounds like something you would do."

"Anyway," Maddie cut in, rolling her eyes. "When I got there, I found out that it looked like a regular bar. I mean, there was food, there was a dance floor, and there were people. The only difference was that people of the same sex were grinding with each other."

Katherine and Chase chuckled again. They couldn't help it.

It was the way Maddie said it. She sounded funny.

"Don't tell me a girl tried to pick you up," Katherine was shocked when Maddie remained silent. The hazel-eyed girl put a hand over her mouth, stifling her laughter. "Oh, my god. Seriously?"

"It wasn't her fault," Maddie argued, much to the other two teen's mirth. "The girl didn't know I was straight. She—" Maddie didn't know if she should let this information go. "She was very straightforward, you know? One moment we were talking…"

"I can't wait to get out of Dillon," Maddie muttered, tapping her feet against the floor.

The girl, Anna, grinned at her. "Not a fan of this town?"

"Not really. I was never a football fan to begin with anyway."

"It's too bad," Anna curled her fingers over Maddie's shoulder. "You'd probably be breaking so many people's hearts when you leave."

Maddie chuckled, abashed at the comment. "No, I wouldn't think—" she was suddenly cut off when Anna's lips descended down on hers, taking the time to sit on Maddie's lap. Anna's fingers began to stroke Maddie's dark hair, playing with the strands between her fingers.

"So pretty," Anna murmured against her lips.

"Uh, Anna?" Maddie wriggled out of the position, her lips detaching themselves from the other girl's as she left Anna sitting on the stool she had been sitting on. Anna looked up at her mischievously. "Anna, did I give you the wrong impression? Because if I did, I'm sorry. I'm not really gay."

Anna surprised Maddie by giggling. "You didn't give me the wrong impression. I knew you were straight the moment you walked into this place. I know a gay person when I see one."

"But—you—"

"I thought you tasted as good as you looked, so I wanted to test it out. It turns out I was right."

Maddie had lost Chase and Katherine over her story, since they were so filled with hilarity at it.

"Stop laughing," Maddie commanded lightly.

"No way," Katherine sputtered, holding onto the bar counter for support as she laughed. Chase was in a similar position. He had tried to look sympathetic at first, but he had lost it and ended up like Katherine.

"Do you still keep in touch with Anna?" Chased asked, once the laughter died down.

Maddie nodded. "We exchange letters and give each other phone calls."

Katherine wiggled her eyebrows. "Does she still like you?"

"She's got a girlfriend now."

Maddie leaned back against the counter, ordering another glass of water. She liked the atmosphere now. Once she had revealed her seeming shocking story, she felt all the tense and the stress leave her. She yawned then, grabbing Katherine's hand to check the girl's watch. Ten past eleven. She widened her eyes at the time. She didn't realize it had flown by so fast. Sleepiness tugged against her hold. She relaxed in her seat, letting her eyes close for a little while. If she fell asleep, Katherine would have to carry her back to the dorms.

Three…

Two…

The sound of a shotgun rang out.

Maddie's body jerked to an awake position, almost falling out of her seat. She exchanged a worried glance with Katherine, but the other girl didn't know who caused that noise. She noticed the music had abruptly stopped, the chatter of the noisy place ceasing into a deadly silence. For some reason, she instantly looked at Caleb, who had been playing foosball with Pogue a while earlier. They were no longer laughing. Maddie followed the eldest Son's gaze, dismayed with dread when it led over to the pool tables.

Tyler was frozen in shock. He watched slowly as a blanket of red began to pool in front of Reid's shirt, right underneath and to the side of his abdomen. Reid's fingers clutched the side of the pool table, shock etched onto his own face as his administered the blood that flowed from him.

Maddie watched the whole ordeal, quickly bounding to her feet. It was ironic. That was what the whole thing was. Didn't she promise to Reid, to Tyler, to herself, that she would save Reid? Wasn't she supposed to be his Prince Charming as she often joked? She found that she did more killing rather than saving.

The blonde Son gasped before he stumbled.

A/N: Ooooh, cliffhanger... Don't worry, I didn't kill him. If I did, then there wouldn't be a story now, would it?

Reviews are appreciated! :)