"The job is okay, it's on and off." He began, swallowing a bite of food, "As in, some weeks there'll be more than others." The food tasted as great as it had smelled when Alex entered the apartment. "This tastes great." He told her, sipping on the wine. Riley had done a great job on picking that too considering how it didn't offend his pallet on the first sip.

It didn't take long for the pair to finish dinner. Once they were both done Alex took the plates and brought them over to the sink, he rinsed them off so that at least nothing would be sticking to them when they were washed later. "I'll wash those later." He told her with a smile as he walked back over to her, drying his hands in a tea towel which he left folded on the counter where they had been eating. "How's getting back into work for you?" He asked, he knew the last few weeks would have had an incredible toll on Riley, especially considering that she had to go back to work two weeks earlier than she thought. However, all in all she seemed to be coping with it well.

The two week break from the city and just everything had to have been the most relaxing time Alex had experienced in years. It almost seemed a shame that it had to end but of course, life had to go on whether or not they were ready for it.

Riley smiled after swallowing her food. "Good, I'm glad you found something." She said. When he complimented her food, she beamed. "Thanks, I've been learning." She said with a laugh. She finished her second glass of wine and set it aside, along with her empty plate. She rolled her eyes when he took the plates and rinsed them off. "Just because I cook, doesn't mean you have to do the dishes, Alex." She said, but a smile stayed on her face as she stood up with him. She shrugged her shoulders when Alex had asked her how work was going.

"It's okay, it would be a lot better if everyone wasn't treating me like some fragile child." She said softly, sighing. "It's like they think I'm going to breakdown and go crazy, even Mrs. Montgomery." She said, frowning. "I know I lost my fiancee.. but, I'm not going crazy from it. I was at first..." She said, thinking back to the night after the funeral when she destroyed her loft and blew up on Alex. Shaking her head of those thoughts, she voided them out of her head and made herself another glass of wine. "Movie?" She asked hopefully, grinning. "I think I found one you'd like." She said amusingly, holding up a DVD case, 'Terminator'.

She popped the movie in and turned the TV on. "I'll grab us a blanket, it's kinda chilly." She said, frowning as she went into her room to grab a blanket a couple pillows. "Here we go." She said. The movie was on the starter screen where they had to press play. She grabbed the bottle and brought it with them. "Ready?" She asked as she pressed play. Riley curled up under the blanket and rested her head on Alex's shoulder as the movie started.

Alex could safely say he had never actually seen any of the Terminator films, but Riley's joke was not at a loss because like all males his age, he had heard the general gist of the movie. He smirked, "Of course. I think I like it already." He teased heading over to the couch as Riley popped the movie in. He sat down making himself comfortable, one arm lying on the arm rest as the other spread along the top of the couch.

"Ready as I'll ever be!" He chirped, taking the wine and glasses from her, placing them carefully on the coffee table and pouring out two fresh glasses before readjusting himself back into position on the couch. Alex had been a fan of James Cameron since he'd seen his first movie, he was surprised with himself that he hadn't seen the 1984 science fiction/action classic sooner.

---

As the credits rolled, Alex finished yet another glass of wine. "I'm still offended by the fact that you think I'm a cyborg." He teased. He'd enjoyed the movie, it was action filled something which he much preferred to the likes of the last movie they had watched together, a chick flick. It wasn't that Alex disliked chick flicks more so that he preferred this sort of thing. "Seriously though, not one part of me is bionic." He groaned, placing his glass down on the table and adjusting in his seat of the couch to face Riley sitting beside him.

"... And I really hope you're not trying to say that I'm the Terminator versus you being whom? Sarah?" He snickered, raising his fingers in a gun like shape and imitating Arnold Schwarzenegger's voice, "You will not be back." He spoke, of course knowing what the actual line was but found this more appropriate.

The movie went on, and Riley enjoyed it. It had been awhile since she saw the movie, probably three or four years ago. When it was over, she was happy to see Alex enjoyed it. She laughed at his cyborg comment. "To be fair, I never once said you were a cyborg," she paused to teasingly knock on his chest, "No robot, I didn't hear metal." She said grinning teasingly at him. She sat on her knees, staring at him. "I know that, but you're just super smart, fast, and strong, right?" She asked, tilting her head to the side. "Sounds like a superhero, actually. Oh, you could be Batman, I wouldn't mind being the female version of Robin- actually, I think I've got a Halloween costume. Hold on." She said, grinning playfully as she jumped up and disappeared into her room.

She emerged wearing a sexy Robin costume, along with the heels. She had let her hair down and did a cute twirl. "You're so dressing up for Batman for Halloween next year." She said, putting her hands on her hips. "I'll be your sidekick, the less cooler sidekick." She said, frowning.

When Riley reappeared after a few minutes dressed in a Halloween costume resembling the sidekick of one of DC's most famous superheroes his eyes widened. Swallowing hard he glanced Riley once over, and then again and another time. She looked good, very good. Halloween was a long time away and of course plans could change but he nodded in approval, "Batman it is." He told her. When she had twirled it showed off her body and Alex couldn't help but watch, after all he was only human.

"The less cool, but more attractive sidekick." He teased, lurching forward on the couch slightly, resting on the edge of it as he took the remote from the table and began turning off the movie and ejecting the DVD so as to distract himself.

"So..." He began, "Want to watch another one...?" He asked, turning back to face Riley, his eyes glancing over her once more as if by themselves.

Riley smiled as she did another twirl. "Don't let me down, Alex." She said teasingly, shaking an accusing finger at him. She felt a blush creep up on her face when he called her the more attractive sidekick. "That is to be determined." She said and turned on the heels she wore to saunter back in her bedroom, giving him a playful wink before changing out of the costume and into a fitting silk nightgown that reached to her knees. She pulled on her red silk robe and tied it, and walked back out. "Another movie it is." She said, sitting beside him. "How about Batman? I'm feeling it right now." She joked, leaning over to take the remote from him and turned to her DVR and played Batman. She had all of the movies recorded.

. . .

When the movie was over, Riley was asleep. Her head on the opposite end of the couch and her legs resting across Alex's lap. Her head was turned to the side, brunette hair covering her face, the dim light from the lamp dancing across her face. Her breathing was shallow and peaceful, a peaceful expression on her face. The past week she was clear of her nightmares, and she was thankful for that. They had been keeping her up and she hadn't been sleeping much, but since everything has been cleared she was sleeping better and she was much more peaceful.

As the movie ended, Alex looked over at Riley, seeing her asleep he smiled, the light danced over her face lighting her up in a way unlike the natural daylight. He removed her shoes and lay down , curling up beside her resting one arm over her side he closed his eyes and tonight he slept.

---

He had left Riley's early, before she had woken up. He'd left her on the couch, sleeping peacefully. "Hey Archer." Alex chirped as he entered his apartment, Archer had cut him a set of keys so that he didn't have to call to get up (considering the buzzers to Archer's building were disconnected). "Any news?" He asked, not expecting much if anything, it had been this way since they got back into the city. He looked over at Archer sitting by his desk, his eyes adjusting to the dimness of the room, Archer had taken the liberty of blacking out the windows, doing it on the cheap with dark bin bags. Alex smirked, "Paranoid much?" He teased.

"There is news actually." Archer uttered, ignoring Alex's last comment about paranoia, "I've managed to pull a trace to one of your 'siblings'."

"...And?" Alex asked, his heart pounding with anticipation.

"She's here... In Seattle." Archer replied, turning away from his computer monitor and looking at Alex for the first time since he had entered the apartment, smiling a sense of achievement overcoming him.

"Seattle...? Here?" Alex asked almost in disbelief.

"Yes, laser surgery records show that a girl, twenty-one had an appointment to get a tattoo removed, bar code." Archer turned back to his computer and brought up some more records. "She was two-seven-five series, like yourself at least as far as I can tell. They don't have any pictures only text I'm surprised that the people after you haven't thought about hacking into records like this. Getting the tattoo removed seems like such an obvious choice."

Alex brought his hand up to touch the base of his neck, running his fingers across the ink that labelled him as property. "Maybe because hacking is illegal, Archer." He joked.

"Maybe." Archer replied with a snicker before closing the documents he had open and wiping them from his computer. "So what are you going to do then?" He asked.

Riley had slept, suprisingly, all night. She woke with a start and checked the time. "Shit!" She exclaimed, jumping up. She threw on a black pencil skirt, a white blouse, and her black heels. Quickly, she brushed her her and pulled it back in a ponytail and brushed her teeth. Her stomach rumbled, but she ignored her protesting hunger. She had fifteen minutes to get to work, she didn't have time to eat. She grabbed her purse and jacket, running down the stairs to the last floor, once in the parking lot she jumped in her truck and started it, driving to work, trying to not speed.

She made it just one minute behind. She got out and locked up her truck before going inside, heading to her desk. "Sorry, Mrs. Montgomery." She called to her boss, but she was surprised to not see her boss sitting behind the desk, instead it was a man dressed in a dark suite with thick hair that had grey streaks.. He turned at the approach of Riley. "Um, hi." Riley said, setting her purse down on her desk. "Where's Mrs. Montgomery?" She asked, eyeing the man suspiciously. "She's taken a leave for awhile- I'm Tommy Rhodes- but people call me The General." He said, offering out his hand to Riley. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Rhodes, but can I ask why you're in Mrs. Montgomery's office?" Riley asked curiously. "I'll be taking her place for awhile, well, indefinitely. I bought out the company." The man who called himself the General said, giving her a warm smile. "Oh, does that mean I'm..." She trailed off, not wanting to know the answer. "No, Ms. George. Elizabeth, Mrs. Montgomery, has praised on what a fantastic assistant you are, and I'd love if you stayed and was mine." He said, giving her a dazzling smile.

She nodded, relieved. "Yes, I'd be delighted. Is there anything I can get you?" She asked the General. "No, but there are files on your desk that needs to be sorted. Thank you, Riley." He said in a smooth voice. Riley smiled and nodded as she went to her desk. The General closed the door behind her before taking his phone out. He dialed a quick number and went to stand by the window. "I'm in, Christopher, yes, she fell for it. Now, I just need her to lead me to Alex- I guess I'll have to do the dirty work all on my own." He growled and hung the phone up before sitting down.

. . . .

When lunchtime came around, Riley sent a quick message to Alex. Meet me for lunch @ coffee shop? I'm feeling a sub! (; -Riley. She hit send and stood up, grabbing her purse. "Mr. Rhodes- I'm out for lunch, is there anything you need?" She asked her new boss, poking her head in. "No, thank you. Enjoy your lunch, and take an extra thirty minutes today." He said. Riley beamed and nodded. "Yes sir." She said before heading out the office and to the coffee shop to, hopefully, meet Alex.

"I don't know." Alex replied to Archer, "I suppose I'm going to try find her... See what she knows, if she's had any trouble like we have." He scratched his head for a moment before taking a couple of steps towards Archer and the computer. "What address did she give to the clinic?" He asked.

"Whatever she gave it's probably fake..." Archer told Alex, "You should know that."

"I know, I know but-" He paused and stroked his chin in thought, "Maybe, just maybe we'll strike gold." He added. Archer shrugged and pulled up the last file he had on the woman. He scrolled down, humming as he did so while he searched for the address thinking about how useful it would would be if he had a program that allowed him to just search a document for needed information. "Ah, here we go." He muttered as he came across it before reading it out to Alex who took it down on a scrap of paper he took from the desk and shoved it into his jacket pocket. He thanked Archer and told him he would meet up with him later tonight to let him know if he had found anything. As he was about to leave his phone buzzed, whipping it out of his pocket he saw that Riley had sent him an SMS.

Meet me for lunch @ coffee shop? I'm feeling a sub! (; -Riley. It read. Alex smiled, fondly but then he frowned.

Sorry. Busy. Will catch up with you later. Alex. He replied leaving the apartment for his bike and to go to the address he had gotten from Archer.

Riley had just ordered her a meatball submarine and a small cup frappe when she received Alex's message. She frowned and shrugged and sat down at the table to eat. She sent a quick okay to him before putting her phone to the side. She took a bite of her sub and wiped the corner of her mouth, when a voice brought her to reality. "Oh, Mr. Rhodes, hey." She said, motioning for him to sit in front of her. "Ms. George. I heard this was a good coffee shop, and they had some killer subs." He said, showing his turkey and cheese to her. Riley smiled and nodded. "Yes, they do." She said, taking another bite out of hers. "Are you liking it? The job?" She asked the General as she sipped on her frappe. He nodded. "I am, it's surprisingly easy." He said. "Am I a good boss, I was so worried I'd be too pushy." He said with a frown.

She watched as his face crinkled when he frowned- he was very handsome. A lot older, but handsome. "Well, so far I approve." She joked. They both shared a laugh. "I better get back to the office- I don't want my boss getting onto me. It's only his first day." She said as they walked outside on their lunch. The General chuckled. "Well, I think he'll be just fine with it, if she agrees." He said eyeing Riley. "Agree to...?" She asked, tilting her head to the side, "Agree to?" She asked with a small smile. "To have dinner with me." He said. Riley smiled and shrugged, fishing her keys out. "I think she will." She said and got into her truck.

When the day was over, she gave the General her number and headed home, sent a quick message to Alex as she drove. Can't hang 2night- got a date. New boss lol his name is Tommy Rhodes- gr8 guy, lunch tomorrow?(: She hit send and continued driving.

_______________________________

Six Years Ago - Flashback

It was a week after the incident with Rick and how him and his buddies treated Riley, things changed at school. Her popularity increased significantly in just that short week. She was at her locker when it all started, putting her books up from English literature. Tiffany, the very same Tiffany who hooked up with Rick, approached her, along with her posse, two pretty blondes. "Riley. I heard what happened... Rick and his friends are such jerks." She said, flipping her blonde hair behind her shoulder. "I can't believe I ever hooked up with him." She said, shaking her head in disgust. "A decision I really regret." She said, shaking her head, her blonde curls bouncing. "We'd like for you to sit with us at lunch.: She said, beaming, her beautiful teeth showing. Perfectly straight and as white as pearls.

"Uhm." Riley looked over at Alex. She always ate lunch with him. "I actually eat with Alex at lunch." She said, turning back to Tiffany. "Listen, sitting with us can increase your social status in school- its a step up on the social ladder. You can stay with, well, the loser." She said, directing her attention to Alex. "Or with us, the winners." She said. "Make the right choice. Hope to see you at lunch." Tiffany said, flipping her hair once more before sauntering off with her crew. She watched as they left and sighed.

After going through the lunch line, Riley stopped to think. Surely Alex would be okay one day without her? Sighing as she made her decision, she walked towards the table where the blonde trio sat. "Good choice." Tiffany said with a smile, Riley returned a weak smile in return.

A week had passed since the incident that had distanced so many people at school from Alex. If he wasn't a loser he was a bully and if not that then an animal. He sighed as he finished putting his books into his locker and replacing them with his gym clothes. The coach had called a practice for the afternoon excusing the team from any and all other academic classes. There was a big game coming up and the coach wanted his players prepped and ready, not that there was much to worry about with Alex, or so he thought.

Closing his locker with a clang he turned to see Riley being chatted to by a group of girls, he knew them to be the bitchy sort and had always stayed away from them. He was surprised at how quickly they could form and change opinions. From jumping on him when he had first started attending school to now making snide remarks as he passed in the hallways or as he could only guess they were doing now; try to steal away his best friend. And for what? He wondered, shits and giggles?

Alex watched as Riley left with the other girls instead of him, her usual partner for lunch. For a usually unemotional guy a lot of emotions were travelling through him right now. Mainly hurt. Giving a hefty sigh he slung his bag over one shoulder and headed out the front of the school and down to the gates where he stood for a while, until the lunch period was over. Looking over his shoulder at the large clock on the front of the school as the bell rang Alex smiled a thin smile at no one in particular and headed off for the practice field.

"Hey, hey! George! You're a fucking animal man!" One of the lads from the team proclaimed clapping Alex on the shoulder, this seemed to be more of a compliment than an insult. "What you did to that asshole... Man, it was glorious! Awesome dude, awesome." The lads that had encircled him headed over to the pitch already in their sweats and t-shirts and gestured for Alex to do the same. He smiled over at them and headed to the on-field changing rooms. He pulled on his baggy black sweat pants and usual loose olive green t-shirt with sleeves that almost came down to his elbows. There was something about baggy clothes that Alex just liked and it was usually this particular attire he would wear for any kind of physical education. He slipped into his DC shoes and headed out onto the field, bringing his bat with him, some of the guys from the team had carved a small lightening bolt near the top to show how they thought of Alex and his "incredible swing".

Alex looked up into the bleachers, hope in his eyes as he thought that maybe Riley would have come out to see him, she had skipped class in the past to watch Alex and the coach usually had her back. The coach didn't mind so long as Alex was on top form. When there was no sign of her, he slumped not being able to deny that he was maybe just a little disappointed in his so called friend.

Lunch had passed by rather quick and despite the guilt she felt for ditching Alex- it was only a one time thing, right? When lunch ended, she walked to her locker with the trio, laughing. They weren't actually that bad. "Listen, Riles, we're going to the mall after school, you can totally join us- if you're going to hang out with us, we seriously have got to change your look." Tiffany said, grinning. "The first couple are on me, my dad is loaded." She said, her smile still on her face. Riley thought for a moment, she was suppose to go bowling with Alex that night, but she'd just reschedule, he'd understand. "Sure. I just have to let me mom know." She said. "Great! You can ride with us. Brenda just got her license and her parents bought her a corvette last week for her birthday, we'll meet you at front." She said. "Okay, bye." Riley said as they walked off.

She was so distracted the rest of the day, she forgot to watch Alex practice. She had went to all of his practices and games. Mentally slapping herself, after last class, she gathered her stuff and went to look for him to apologize. She ran outside, but didn't see him. "Riles!" Tiffany waved her hand from a dark blue corvette with the hood down. Riley waved back and with one last hopeful look, headed towards the car.

Later that night she arrived home, a few bags in her hand from all the shopping. "Mom, I'm home." Riley called, when she heard her mom say okay, she took her bags to her room. She loved her new outfits, though a few of them were a little sexy for school, but she wanted to fit in, she wanted to be friends with these girls. Her picked one of the outfits out and smiled. It was a short dress with silver sequins and she bought silver heels to go with it. Tiffany was having a party this weekend and invited Riley, insisting she wore this dress, and she agreed. Sighing, she went to put all her new clothes away and shoes.

Alex had left his room to go to the bathroom as Riley had just come up the stairs carrying her bags of new clothes. "Riley." He chirped, "Hey." He added with a smile before going into the bathroom and closing the door behind him. He walked up to the sink and took his toothbrush and brushed his teeth, keeping eye contact with himself in the mirror he thought about the day. The disappointments Riley had shown him, his memory traipsing back to her promise only a week ago. A promise Alex was already guessing had not meant much. Breaking eye contact he looked down into the sink and spat, rinsed off his toothbrush and the sink before heading back to his room.

Laying down on his bed he looked up at the ceiling, distracted only when his phone vibrated under his pillow. He pulled it out and checked it, a text from Emma a girl at school that had become quite friendly with him over the last week. She had asked him how it was going and what he was up to. He replied with something he had learnt was quite common while texting. "Not much. wbu??

He made himself more comfortable in his bed adjusting his shoulders so that they sank into his pillows and the pair began texting back and forth. She was pretty or so Alex thought at least, he wondered if she thought the same about him but wouldn't dare to ask her. Then it happened. She had asked him out on a date. "Sure. C you then." He replied a minute or two passed and he received to x's. Alex smirked and placed his phone back under his pillow.

Riley went downstairs to dinner when her mom called them. She sat down as they were being served hamburgers with french fries. "How was your day, hunny?" Mrs. George asked her daughter. "Good- mom, a couple girls wants me to come over... study group, is that alright?" She asked after chewing a bite of her burger up. "Sure, honey. Who is it?" She asked. "Tiffany, Brenda, and Carly. They are the ones I went shopping with earlier." She asked, popping a french fry in her mouth. "Okay, is Alex joining?" She asked curiously. "Oh, um, no. Just us, why?" She asked. "You always study with Alex." She asked with a frown.

"I know, Mom, but he can't be my study partner forever." She asked, shrugging. Her mom narrowed her eyes at her as she stood at the foot of the steps to call for Alex before returning to the dinner table. "Mom, I think I'm done." She said, taking another bite of her burger and taking a gulp of water. Riley went to go upstairs and stopped at Alex's bedroom. She poked her head in. "Dinner is ready- mom's calling you." She said before going into her own bedroom. She picked up her phone and opened her messages and laid back on her bed.

She had a message from Tiffany asking if she was going to school tomorrow.

Riley: Of course- why wouldn't I?
Tiffany: We're skipping, join us?
Riley: IDK...
Tiffany: C'mon, u wanna fit in, rite?
Riley: Ok.. I will..
Tiffany: Great, we will pick you up!

After sending the last message, she rolled over and yawned before going to sleep.

The week had gone by quickly and without too many hiccups, Alex was out with Emma, they were on their way to a party that was being thrown, she had been invited and told to bring any guest she liked. Her choice had obviously been Alex. They hadn't had much time during the week at school to talk about their relationship of sorts. Earlier that Saturday they had gone on their date, for coffee first and then to the cinema, now as the day was coming to a close and the night was drawing in ever faster the new couple walked down the road hand in hand talking about nothing of great importance. Alex looked up at the cloudy winter sky just in time to see the first snowfall of this year. "Look." He whispered, squeezing Emma's hand and with his free hand gesturing up towards the sky.

"Oh wow, how pretty." She giggled with excitement before the pair continued on their way. It didn't take long before the loud party music and shouts of the party goers reached them. If noise was an indication of how well a party was going then this one sounded like the party that everybody who was anybody was going to be at. "Come on!" Emma encouraged him with a squeeze of the hand before pulling him along with her.

Riley was thrilled about the weekend. Her parents hadn't found out about her skipping the other day, and she was glad, or she wouldn't even be attending this party. Riley curled her hair and put on her make-up, using silver eye shadow to go with her dress. She then shaved her legs real quick and slipped into the silver dress, grinning at how it made her look, along with the shoes - fantastic. After giving herself one last look over, Riley pulled on a black trench coat and changed her heels to flats, stuffing the heels in her purse. She quickly made it downstairs, said a quick good-bye to her parents before they could see her, and hopped in the car with the blonde trio, then they were off to the party.

A couple hours went by, and Riley was having a great time. She had a good buzz going after three shots and a cup of beer and she was dancing to the 50 Cent song blaring over the system. She looked towards the door and frowned when she saw Alex come inside- with another girl. She turned her frown upside down when Tiffany strolled over to her, hand in hand, with a guy she recognized as a football player. "Riles, this is Jeremy, my brother, and star kicker in the football team." She said and shoved Jeremy a little so the two were right up against each other. "Dance with me?" He asked. Flustered, Riley nodded as she danced with him, moving to the music, taking another shot.

Emma and Alex sat on a empty couch in a conservatory room. They both had taken a bottle of beer and chose to drink from the bottle rather than pour it out into a cup. The conservatory had been designated as the smoking area, but almost all of the smokers were out in the back garden leaving the room completely empty except for the two of them. Emma placed her bottle down on the table and placed one of her hands onto Alex's free hand. "Alex...?" She asked sheepishly. He finished taking a swig of his bottle before looking at Emma.

"Yes?" He asked her, curious.

"Do you like me?" She asked a thin smile cracking her lips as she traced her fingertips along the back of his hand. Her eyes locking onto his.

"Of course." He replied, returning the smile in favor before taking another, smaller swig from the bottle, he caught a glimpse of Riley dancing with a tall, strong looking guy. He grimaced remembering the night with Rick but shook it off knowing that not everyone was like him. He wondered if Rick would be here tonight and became lost in thought still watching Riley as she danced with Jeremy.

"Oh, ew." Emma began, "Please tell me you don't fancy your sister..."

"What? No, she's not my sister..." Alex replied.

"That doesn't make it any better, it's still so perverted..." Emma grumbled, standing about to walk out until Alex grabbed her, gently by the wrist and turned her around.

"I don't fancy her. I'm just looking out for her." He told her, sternly. Emma looked over at Riley dancing with Jeremy, a glare crossed her face until she remembered what Alex had done to Rick, she'd been one of the party-goers that night. She frowned feeling stupid but soon wiped the thoughts from her head as she dropped herself into Alex's lap, picking up her beer from the table and swigging again keeping eye contact with Alex.

"So you do like me then..." She teased.

After two more shots, Riley was feeling good. She smiled up at Jeremy was she turned to face him, grinding up against him. He leaned down to whisper something in her ear. Smiling, she nodded and took his hand as he led her out back. She was glad he had a hold of her, or she'd be falling on her face. When they were in the back, away from everybody, he pressed her against the wall and his mouth took over hers, she returned his kiss. They made out for five minutes before Jeremy's hands started to go up her shirt. Riley went to stop him, but she stopped herself. She wanted to fit in- she couldn't be a virgin anymore. Nodding, she proceeded to kiss Jeremy as they laid on the ground..

Riley slipped back on her shoes and fixed her hair. Jeremy had went to go get some drinks, leaving her alone. When he was out of her sight, she leaned against the wall and scooted down, crying. What have I done? She weeped in her head. When she heard someone approaching, she quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and stood up. Jeremy returned with their drinks, handing hers to her. "Want to go back inside?" He asked and she shook her head. "I think I'm just going to go home.." She said softly and turned to leave.

Riley was relieved when Monday came around. She threw on a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt with a black jacket, pulling her hair in a ponytail and putting on black sneakers. She didn't bother eating, but instead went straight to school.

Walking down the halls, Riley felt a lot of eyes on her, she looked around and saw people were laughing, then her phone buzzed and she opened the message. It was from a number she didn't recognized, but it was a picture. Riley's eyes grew wide and her hand went to her mouth as he eyes burned. It was a picture of her and Jeremy, with her being naked and what they were doing clear. Quickly shutting it off, she ducked into the girls bathroom and hid in a stall.

Alex had spent Sunday out and about with Emma, only really coming home to sleep. She had promised him he would come to all of his games, he liked that. Baseball was something he had grown to really enjoy, being on the team certainly helped. It was also where Alex now held most of his friends considering everyone else thought he was some kind of monster except for the select few who had enjoyed watching Rick getting the shit kicked out of him. His face was still completely "messed up" according to some and the doctor's had said that his nose would never be the same. Rick also hadn't had to opportunity to get the fake teeth put in by the dentist yet and so was walking around the school looking like a banged up hillbilly.

Monday had rolled around quicker than expected and all Alex wanted to do was hang around all day with Emma again, he was infatuated and so was she. However, the pair had agreed they wouldn't skip any classes to see each other, mainly because Emma's parents would probably not let her see Alex anymore if they were caught. Emma's father was strict, some high ranking officer in the United States Army, he'd apparently seen a lot of Iraq before he was taken off field duty and given more of a "desk" role. Her mother was a nurse, the ordinary kind out in the local hospital or one of them, Alex couldn't remember which. He hadn't met her parents yet but Emma had expressed how much she would love if he would so it was something that was on his mind.

He was wearing dark, straight leg jeans and a branded t-shirt, soda co. that read "Don't be Brave, Do not Trespass" around a printed red indian's head. It was a t-shirt his mother had bought for him when she was out shopping, she said it matched his personality and that he was like a Soux Indian, brave and determined. He liked that.

Today was not like other days, there was a malicious intent going around in the air so thick that Alex could almost taste it, it was Emma who broke the news to him. Alex had ran around the school frantically asking where Riley was and decided to break boundaries when he entered the girls bathroom, all those pouting and putting on make-up in the mirror leaving. He knocked on the only closed stall and crouched down, leaning his back against the wall.

"Riley?" He asked, "You in there?"

Riley took some toilet paper to wipe her nose. She didn't want to be here anymore, she was sick of everything. She rested her head against the wall and looked at her phone. She was getting a lot of mean messages from different people.

"Slut"
"Get a real room, hoe bag!"
"If I get you drunk, will you fuck me too?"
"Nice body!"

Shutting her phone off, she buried her face in her arms which rested on her knees and cried, just cried. She stopped when she heard a familiar voice. Alex... She kept quite for a moment, but closed her eyes. "What, Alex?" She asked hoarsely. She stood up and wiped her eyes, opening the stall door and looking down at him. "Are you here to call me names, too?" She asked, stepping over his legs to get to the sink. "I made a mistake, okay? I drank too much and I slept with a guy I barely knew, I gave up the one thing I should have saved." She said, leaning on the sink for support as she closed her eyes, more tears streaming down her cheeks.

"I really screwed up- everything." She said and turned to Alex before leaving the girls bathroom.

In the hall, Tiffany stopped her. "Riles, I'm sorry, I just heard what happened." She said with a frown. "It was my fault. I was trying to make a call and I must have accidentally snapped a picture, then sent it around." She said, smiling. Riley glared at the blond. "You-" Tiffany held up her hand. "Hey now, calm down. It's part of my plan- it means you have claimed Jeremy as yours, and, well he'll get you up that ladder real quick, in more then one way." Tiffany said, smiling sweetly. "Come, let's eat lunch." She said, linking her arm in Riley's as they headed to the cafeteria.