I found Mom holed up in her office again. She didn't permit me to come in. I took it upon myself to skip over to her desk.

"What are you working on?" I asked, peering over her shoulder.

Mom closed out the screen, placing her phone down on the face.

That wasn't suspicious at all.

She swiveled in her chair. "Since when are you so interested in my work?" Her tone was stern, and the lines on her forehead crinkled before she relaxed her face.

I shrugged nonchalantly. "I was just asking to ask." Actually, I was digging for dirt and praying I didn't find myself in a hole that I couldn't get out of.

Mom adjusted her glasses, looking me up and down. "I think you should change."

Nothing was wrong with what I was wearing. Mom preferred me in dresses and skirts like a proper young lady. You might catch me on a good day wearing one of those, but most of the time, it was simple things like jeans, sneakers, and a t-shirt. I was all about comfort above all else.

That was what Mom got for trying to raise a girly girl. She wanted a ballerina or gymnast, but her daughter turned out more like her father, interested in documentaries, history, and unsolved mysteries. Dad had always encouraged whatever hobbies and interests I had. And Mom used to scold him for trying to make me into what she thought was a tomboy. She said it as if it was a bad thing. Dad used to laugh it off, and I loved knowing that he had my back.

"Nope. I don't have the time. And I don't want to be late. Rosie is picking me up today."

Mom turned away from me to start up her laptop.

I didn't know if that was supposed to be her way of saying that the conversation was over, but I wasn't finished here yet. "You're working from home today?" I asked.

"No. I have to head into the office an hour or so, but I wanted to check my emails before I get ready." She glanced at me from over her shoulder. "Is there something you need to say, or did you wake up and decide it would be a good day to annoy your mother."

Whoa, okay. Someone woke on the wrong side of the bed.

I didn't think I was annoying, but I didn't usually spend this much time in her office either. She didn't make it very welcoming, and sometimes, I would knock, and she would run to answer it, standing by the door without fully letting me in.

Why did an assistant act as if she worked for the CIA?

My eyes went to the photos on her desk. One family photo was with her, the mayor, and his wife Mabel at the Christmas party last year.

Mom has been at his office for about two years or more. She had started working there a little after dad passed away. Out of all the jobs Mom had applied for, the mayor was the only one to call her back and bring her in here for an interview. It was hard getting back on her two feet after being a stay-at-home mom for nearly a decade, but the mayor saw potential in her and gave her a shot.

Without this job, I didn't know what we would have done otherwise, so I had been grateful. I've met the mayor's family a few times during a couple of events, and they had me thinking that they were this smart, put-together family. But with the way everything went down with Cam and how Jason's been acting. I believed there was something they were hiding.

The most beloved man in town could be posing as an angel, but not all angels were good.

I wouldn't want to assume my mother was in on it, but how could I not? Didn't I have to look at the mayor's inner circle too?

I felt a headache coming on. I needed to take my mind off of this for a bit.

"Dad's birthday is coming up." I forced the words out because it still physically hurt me to desperately want to celebrate his birthday, knowing that he wasn't here to take pictures with us and blow out the candles on the chocolate he always asked us for. "Are we going to do something for him?"

I've had this floating lantern idea in my head for a while, and I think dad would have liked that because it reminded him of the lantern festival he went to with Mom in Bali before I was born.

Mom cleared her throat. "It's been a hectic week at the office with the new park construction getting approved and the new edition to the grandpa's retirement home. I'm booked out this week. I'll have to see if we can do something next week."

I stared at the back of her head, mentally speaking words that I wouldn't say out loud. It would make me feel better, but it would also make her feel like crap. I understood that she was busy but putting aside an hour for dad, shouldn't cut too much into her schedule. This was a once-a-year thing.

"Fine," I mumbled, walking out of the office.

Mom didn't say goodbye or have a nice day. Her eyes hadn't left the screen. I just shut the door behind me.

"I'll see you in class later. I have to run to my locker!" I told Rosie before sprinting up the stairs. I didn't see Cam at his locker, so I idled by mine until he could get here.

When I was adjusting my ponytail, Cam came into view, and our eyes met in my mirror.

My lips tipped up into a smirk, thinking about how funny it was to see him scurry off the other day. I bravely winked to get a rise out of him.

He quickly averted his eyes, but I saw him bite his bottom lip, forcing himself not to smile back.

"Morning, Cam," I said as he reached his locker. "No motorcycle today, huh?" He's been driving his jeep more and more, maybe because he liked to drop Suho home after school.

Cam shook his head, the strands of wet hair slapped against his cheeks.

Grabbing a trusty rubber band and I walked over to him. "Hey, look at me for a second." His eyes didn't meet mine. They were staring straight ahead, but he angled his body towards me. I went on my tiptoes and sleeked his hair back until I could make a ponytail.

"Thanks." He smirked for a fraction of a second. But I wanted a full-on grin.

"Can I ask you something?" I didn't wait for him to answer that. "Who's this so-called crush you've been gossiping to my gramps about?" I tightened the rubber band, securing it in place for him.

"No one you know," Cam replied all too quickly. He turned to put in his combination. I knew he wouldn't confess. But I wanted him too.

"Really?" I rested a shoulder against the locker, crossing my ankles and then my arms. "That's funny because gramps thinks it's me?" I tilted my head.

Cam's hands stilled. His tongue darted out to wet the bottom lip before he cleared his throat. He gave the locker a hard tug, accidentally letting it slam into the one beside it.

I tilted my head to get a better view of his face. "Is he wrong?" I asked in a whisper.

"Totally," Cam's tone of voice matched mine.

Let out a long sigh. "Well, that sucks. I guess I should tell Jason that I had fun the other night, and we should do it again sometime."

Cam's eyes darkened and a scowl formed on his lips. He quietly shoved one of his textbooks into his bag.

"It's none of my business," Cam said through his teeth.

"If you say so." I sang the words, stepping back over to my locker.

Cam muttered something like he was talking to himself, and I was dying to know what he had to say. He took one look in my direction, and his eyes softened. The last time I saw him give me that look, his lips had pressed against mine, and the world melted away. It's one of my favorite memories, even if it felt like nothing more than a dream.

"You want to walk to class together?" I asked the statue formally known as Cam. His face broke out of the mold it was stuck in, and he smiled briefly.

"I'd like that." He adjusted the backpack on his shoulder. "We're heading the same direction anyway. It's a convenient plan of action."

The halls started to get crowded, and people, still being the judgmental asses that they were, stared at Cam as they walked by. I could no longer tell if they were admiring his hotness or the fact that he was a fallen star.

"You know, maybe it'll be best if...."

I shook my head, "Oh hush."

I snatched my backpack off the floor and shut my locker. I didn't want to say what I told him all the time. Words are great to hear, but more than anything, I wanted to show Cam. I looped my elbow around his and dragged him along. "We don't want to be late. Pick up the pace."

I didn't hear the sound of laughter, but I saw his shoulders tremble quietly.

Getting Cam to laugh was just as good as making him smile.

I left the cafeteria a little early when I noticed Cam and Suho weren't sitting at the usual table, so I headed for the library. I took one of the back staircases that led to one of the library entrances for a shortcut.

Bounding up the steps, I stumbled into one of those scenes straight out of a TV show.

Suho was getting bullied by these two guys. They pushed his lanky figure into the vending machine, and the impact forced him to hunch over, resting a hand on his back.

Those rat bastards.

"HEY!" I called out, grabbing their attention. I ran over to Suho, asking if he was alright.

"Oh, is this your girlfriend coming to rescue you," one of them teased.

There was absolutely nothing wrong with a girl coming to save you. That was number one.

"At least he could get a girlfriend. Have either of you looked gotten a good look in the mirror before your reflection screamed and shattered it into a million pieces?"

The big stocky one behind the initial bully, stepped forward trying to appear tough. He was no taller than I was, and he thought that I would what? Cower and back down? Ha.

"You calling us ugly?" he said.

"I was, but I think stupid would fit you better since you had to ask me whether or not I was calling you ugly." I tsked. "It's a shame you were cursed with bad looks and a terrible personality to match."

Suho tugged on my arm, pulling me behind his skinny frame. "What are you doing?" I hissed. He threw his arms out on both sides of me.

"If something happens to you because of me, Cam will kick my ass," he said in a panicked tone.

I laughed in disbelief. "I highly doubt that." My eyes went back to the bullies in front of us. "So what's their deal? They go around picking on the people that look better than them. Wow. That must be a long list."

The first bully lurched forward the next thing I knew, I pulled Suho out the way.

And fist connected with my mouth. I felt a sharp pain zing right through me. I knew for a fact that he must have busted my lip.

"That wasn't very nice," I mumbled. "Can't believe you'd hit a girl." My mouth was on fire and not in the way I'd like it to be.

One looked apologetic while the other could have cared less. Suho tackled one of the guys in a blur, and the next guy tried to jump on him, but I wasn't having it. I managed to shove the stocky guy off of Suho and punched him in the nose. A four-person brawl happened in the middle of the halls, and the Vice Principal, who had happened to be walking around the corner, caught everything and had to break us up.

I was told they would call my mom at the principal's office, a sense of dread washed over me. She was probably in the middle of a meeting and then got the phone call about her daughter in the middle of a fight. In my defense, I was helping a friend of a friend. It got out of hand quicker than I wanted it to.

Like I had pictured it in my hand, Mom came storming into the office five seconds before Cam.

He slipped right by Mom and kneeled in front of me. "Are you okay? Let me see it." His thumb brushed my bottom lip, and I flinched.

"This is your fault. You're a terrible influence and a disgrace to the community." Mom seethed, pointing at Cam, who kept his back turned to her.

I didn't want Mom to be one of those people who called him mean things but there she was.

Cam ignored her, asking if my lipped hurt and if the ice was helping. I nodded yes to both. Then he replied, "I'm sorry."

After talking with the vice-principal, it was decided that Suho and I wouldn't be suspended since it was our first offense. But we will have detention twice next week, and I was okay with that.

What I wasn't okay with was the death glare Mom gave the entire time. I knew I'd be dead meat when I stepped through our front door.