June passed and it was now July. Citrusella, Candlehead, and Graham hadn't made any progress at all with Sourward, Matlow, or Crumbelina respectively. The others however had formed really strong friendships.

Pepsino was growing more comfortable dancing with Snowanna, now even dancing with her without a thought. They didn't just dance though, they also talked about other things and played some games. They were becoming very good friends.

Adamec and Swizzle had become like brothers and Sticky found herself liking Adamec a lot more than Swizzle (though still held some affection for Swizzle). They, including Minty as well, had also gone back to teaching Bodhivian and Stormberry other sports.

Torvald and Bitalo were growing closer and Bitalo was starting to grow braver.

Applelo had been showing Madison more nature, and she was getting really good at horseback riding. They also were growing closer, though Madison still hadn't told her parents about her second life.

Nougetsia, Charleston, and Adorabeezle were pretty much inseparable now. They had really been enjoying themselves with vintage, current-British, and current-American things. Thanks to Nougetsia and Adorabeezle Charleston was starting to become more open-minded about current things. However Nougetsia and Charleston couldn't agree on one subject at first: which vintage singers were better. That argument started one day when Nougetsia, Charleston, and Adorabeezle couldn't agree on which music to listen to.

"I tell you Britain produced the best singers." Nougetsia frowned.

"No way, Americans had the best singers." Charleston frowned. "You agree right Adorabeezle?"

"Sorry, I'm staying out of this." Adorabeezle shrugged. "I'm equally loyal to both America and my sister. Hence why we never argued whether British culture or American culture was better."

"Look, American singers had nothing on British singers." Nougetsia said. "British singers topped them all the way."

"You're crazy." Charles scoffed. "How can you say anyone can even get up there with Frank-freaking-Sinatra or Bing-blasted-Crosby?"

"Let's see:" Nougetsia pretended to think it over. "Freddie Mercury, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Ringo Starr, Elton John, the Bee Gees, Queen..."

"I get it I get it..." Charles muttered. "I'm not saying you're entirely right but...you do have a point. I admit I can't help but like The Beatles or Elton John anyway..."

"Well, I really like Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby too." Nougetsia grinned.

Charles smiled back.

"Okay so then we're agreed: we each have our own tastes and no one's preference is better than another's right?" Adorabeezle chuckled.

"Right." Charleston and Nougetsia chuckled.

"Right, and if you two argue about this subject again I'm gonna hit you both with my Ice Cream Cannon." Adorabeezle smirked.

"Well then we'll have to save those arguments for summer." Nougetsia laughed. "That way we'll get a good way to cool off."

"Eh, I'd rather avoid these arguments entirely." Charleston smiled. "I don't like fighting with you."

"Me neither...I guess our pride just got the better of us." Nougetsia shrugged.

"Yeah." Charleston agreed.

"You think?" Adorabeezle smirked.

Charleston and Nougetsia gave her a playful-annoyed look.

Now as for the relationships that weren't working out...

Candlehead had decided to introduce Matlow to a few ways of having fun in winter. She first started off with a sled ride, still not knowing that Matlow didn't like her at all. He only had been continuing to let her teach him how to have fun because he didn't want to hurt her feelings. See back home he had been a little more honest than he should've, and it caused the other students to shun him. So when he and his parents went to Sugar Rush for vacation he vowed to think twice before speaking.

"Candlehead, please, I'm not sure about this." Matlow protested.

"Oh relax, there's nothing to it." Candlehead smiled. "I've sledded lots of times before."

"Yeah but I never have."

"That's why I'm taking you sledding now. Here we go!"

She pushed off and they went down the hill they were on. Matlow was scared at first...but then had to admit that this was kinda fun. Candlehead cheered and laughed and Matlow actually smiled.

But then Candlehead miscalculated on one jump. She had forgotten that there was extra weight on the sled and so had jumped wrong. They both landed in a chocolate puddle at the bottom of the hill instead of landing past it and coasting to a stop.

"Oh no..." Candlehead said apologetically as she wiped her face. "Oh Matlow I'm sorry, I forgot that there were two people on the sled instead of one...I miscalculated..."

Matlow spluttered as he spat chocolate out of his mouth and wiped his face and clothes. Candlehead was very upset, Matlow looked furious. He turned and glared at her...but then saw how sorry she looked. He calmed down a little and...a strange noise started to come out of his mouth. The noise got louder and louder until Candlehead was smiling: Matlow was laughing. Soon he was laughing so hard that he had doubled-over. Candlehead, overjoyed, started laughing as well. They both were now laughing and laughed until they ran out of breath.

"Did I..." Matlow said breathlessly. "Did I just laugh...?"

"You did." Candlehead was catching her breath as well, but it was easier for her since she had practice laughing.

"I've never laughed before...not in my entire life..." Matlow admitted.

"Really?" Candlehead looked sad. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Well I never had a reason to..." Matlow shrugged. "At least not until now. Thank you Candlehead, I actually have been wanting to laugh before but could never bring myself to."

"You're welcome." Candlehead smiled.

Matlow looked at her, and suddenly saw her in a new light. She was no longer annoying to him, instead she was just a little too energetic for him.

"Candlehead I...I admit I hadn't been having fun at all before." He said. "In fact I found those games...more annoying than fun. But today...I don't know why but today I actually had fun."

"Maybe...it's because you finally loosened up?" Candlehead suggested. "Laughing can do that to you."

"I guess...anyway I...well I would like to play with you some more but on one condition."

"What is it?"

"That we play at my pace instead of yours."

"It's a deal." Candlehead grinned.

They got out of the puddle, and Matlow found out something surprising: instead of staining his clothing the chocolate just fell off it without leaving a mark. He decided to look into this later, as for now he was just going to have more fun with Candlehead.

The next day Candlehead wanted to play some more but Matlow had other ideas.

"You taught me how to have fun, so it's my turn to teach you something: facts you don't know." Matlow smiled.

"How are you going to do that?" Candlehead asked.

"Simple: we'll take a hike and if you don't know something just ask me and I'll explain it." Matlow grinned. "I can't guarantee to know everything, but I have learned a lot more than most other students."

"Okay." Candlehead grinned. "That actually sounds like fun."

They went on the hike, and Matlow ended up teaching Candlehead many things.

Later that day, Citrusella had decided to bake a blueberry pie, her specialty, for Sourward. She then looked for him and found him in the park.

"Hi Sourward, I made this pie for you." Citrusella smiled.

"Ugh, don't you get it?" Sourward snapped. "I'm never going to be friends with you, or even like you! Now leave me alone before I do something I might regret!"

He ran off, leaving Citrusella more hurt than ever before. She dropped her pie and ran for the nearest bench. She then cried on the bench, not knowing that Sourward was nearby. He had double-backed and was hiding amongst the plants behind the bench in hopes that not even Citrusella would be able to find him there. He listened to her cry and started to feel bad.

"Citrusella!" He heard a female voice gasped.

He peered between the plants and saw a girl with a candle on her head. Candlehead of course, her name was one of those names that anyone could remember.

"Oh my goodness, what happened?" Candlehead asked.

You see she was taking a walk through the park so that she could use the information Matlow told her to enjoy the walk more. Like which plants were good to snack on, especially in combinations.

"Sourward..." Citrusella sniffled. "I made him a pie but he acted as if I had done something to offend him. I've just been trying to make him feel better but he acts as if I'm hurting him. Maybe...maybe I should give up."

"Now don't do that." Candlehead said gently. "You know how I've been trying to teach Matlow how to have fun?"

"Yeah, but from what I've seen you haven't been having any luck." Citrusella wiped an eye as she sat up.

"I just had some luck yesterday." Candlehead grinned. "We went sledding but ended up in a chocolate puddle. He was about to get mad but then started laughing and we became friends for real. We also hung out today and he taught me so many cool facts about the plants and animals around here. Anyway, my point is: don't give up. If someone has a good heart then they'll eventually come around."

"You do have a point..." Citrusella sighed. "I mean I can tell Sourward has a good heart...it's just in so much pain...I wonder what happened to him?"

"I doubt we'll know until he tells us." Candlehead shrugged.

Sourward now felt horrible. Bitalo had been right: his fear of getting hurt again caused him to hurt someone who was sincerely trying to make him feel better. He quietly snuck away and went to think things over. Maybe he should give Citrusella a chance...he then saw something blue on the path. He left the plants and saw Citrusella's pie on the ground. Fortunately it had landed pan-first so it was still in pretty good condition, albeit a little messed up. But the most important thing was that it was still edible. Sourward picked up the pie and headed towards Citrusella. Candlehead was gone, having left recently down a different path.

"Citrusella?" He said gently.

Citrusella turned and saw Sourward holding her pie.

"You overheard didn't you?" She realized.

"Yes...I'm sorry for making you feel bad." He sat down next to her. "I just...I had been really hurt not too long ago and I've been scared of being hurt again."

"Oh." Citrusella realized. "But I'd never hurt you. I'd never hurt anyone."

"I thought the one who had hurt me would never hurt me either." Sourward frowned. "She also had been kind and sweet towards me...but it was just acting!" A tear flowed down his cheek.

Citrusella got it:

"Ex-friend."

"Ex-girlfriend actually...her name was Thembara." Sourward tried to contain his feelings. "I was so in love with her, and I thought she loved me back...but she had just been using me. Her full name was Thembara Sluggum...and her parents owned the company that rivaled the one my parents own."

"Oh no..." Citrusella put a hand to her mouth.

"Exactly." Sourward nodded. "We had been dating for a few months when I had made the mistake of letting her into my parents' factory. I was going to inherit the factory next so I was very into learning how things were done and even participated in the production. I left for just a short time to help a worker with a problem...and Thembara took that opportunity to steal some files containing recipes. We had been using copies in the computer instead and so didn't even know they were gone until dad went to file something a couple days later. He, mom, and I were furious. Even though we didn't use the files anymore they had still been passed down throughout the family for generations, same with the factory itself, and so were special to us. They were like heirlooms to us really.

Anyway, we couldn't figure out who stole the files until I asked Thembara the next day to help us locate the thief. She said we could stop looking...because she stole the files. I thought she was joking, until she revealed her true feelings. She didn't care about me at all, she just cared about her family becoming wealthy and resented my family for being more successful. She admitted everything, that she only went out with me so that she could get the files and that she never loved me or even liked me... She also said that she was glad we wouldn't have to continue dating because...because she hates me, and my family. She said so herself. She...she even said that any girl would be a fool to want to go out with me..." Sourward lost it and set the pie aside so that he could cry into his hands. "Then she pushed me down, calling me worthless and a loser. She broke my heart so badly that I was never able to trust strangers again. It happened a few months ago and I still haven't healed...my heart is still broken..."

Citrusella shed tears of her own, feeling more than sympathetic for Sourward. She hugged him, catching him off-guard. He then saw her tears and realized that she truly felt sorry for him.

"I'm so sorry...no one should ever have to go through with that." Citrusella sobbed.

"I know...anyway after all that happened I told my parents." Sourward had calmed down a little but was still shedding tears. "They weren't mad at me but they were furious about what Thembara did, especially for hurting me. Bitalo and his parents, who used to live outside the city I came from, also found out and were very mad and sympathetic. Bitalo especially, he started hanging out with me even more so that I could have someone there to comfort me whenever I cried or lost my temper. But the best thing he did was to tell Thembara off." Sourward then actually smiled. "I didn't see what actually happened, but according to Bitalo he had seen Thembara in the park and lost his temper. He screamed at her for hurting me and for stealing from my family, and said that she was the real loser. He also called her a split-peabrain for missing out on her chance to spend the rest of her life with me."

Citrusella laughed a bit.

"That must've felt great." She grinned.

"It did, when I found out, and I only did because Bitalo was still angry when he came to my place - we had planned to play some games at the time. Anyway, I asked what was wrong and he admitted to telling Thembara off. I thanked him for being brave enough to do that, especially since I didn't have the courage to do it myself, and hugged him." Sourward sighed, still smiling a little. "Bitalo and I first met in kindergarten - he lived close enough to go to the same school as me - and we have been inseparable ever since. I'll never know what I did to deserve such a good friend like him."

"I'm sure you did a lot of things...and I'm also sure you deserve more good friends." Citrusella said a bit shyly. "I understand you not wanting more friends, but I still would like to be your friend."

"Well..." Sourward hesitated. "I don't know, I mean...if my heart ever got broken again I know I'd never recover from it...not that I'm actually recovering from last time."

"I know, all I ask is that you give me a chance." Citrusella put her hand on his. "We don't even have to be official friends or anything, I just want to be able to be kind to you without getting yelled at in return."

"That I can promise." Sourward nodded. "I do feel really bad for hurting you before."

"It's okay, that was just your pain and fear talking." Citrusella smiled. "Not you."

Sourward actually smiled back. Citrusella then hugged him again. Sourward froze, but couldn't help from hugging her back. His heart still hurt horribly, but despite that he was starting to feel a little better.