-----------------------------------------------------------

Waiting for the bell to ring was an act of patience in itself. I stared through the library windows as the rain cascaded to the ground in torrents outside.

I had been trying to read one of the new books, but eventually gave up as my thoughts drifted all over the place. The silver phone beside me reminded me of what I was about to do.

Finally, the sound of the bell echoed lowly through the library. I stood up and placed the book back on the shelf, making a mental note to come back and borrow it. But not right now.

I hurried through the halls which were crowded with a sea of students as more classes dismissed. Kevin would be finished with his Computer Science class now. I made it to the computer labs in time to see him exiting and crept up behind him.

"Boo!"

He turned around with a smile. "Was that supposed to scare me?"

"I bet you're shaking in your boots."

I held his phone up. "So should I just keep this or...?"

"Thanks Liz. I knew it would have been safe with you."

As he reached for the phone, I slipped it into my cardigan pocket and stepped into the lab. It was pretty cold in here. Kevin followed me inside dubiously. I sat down at one of the computers.

I removed his phone from my pocket. "We need to talk first."

"You're holding my phone hostage?" he asked uncertainly.

I thought about it and sighed. I placed the phone on the table.

"You can have it back. I really need to talk with you though, Kevin," I said .

He sat down at the computer next to me. "What's up?"

That was such a casual question, but I didn't have a casual response to give back.

"I just want to know what's going on. I feel like things have been getting really weird since Ashton's party."

"Weird between us?" he questioned softly.

"Weird between the five of us."

Kevin frowned. "Me, you, Callie, Mel..." he counted off on his fingers. "Five?"

"You forgot Ashton," I added.

"Ashton?"

"Yeah, because somehow he ended up in all of this and I'm not even sure how."

Kevin sighed and stared at his phone. "Liz..."

"You're friends with Ashton, right? You said you knew why he was being like this with me. But I really don't understand what's going on right now."

"You will soon."

"You keep saying that, but that doesn't change anything right now. It's weird how Ashton keeps appearing and it's even weirder that you keep disappearing when he does."

"Liz... I'm really sorry about that." His eyes were sad. "I don't know how I can make it up to you."

"An explanation works," I said. "I'm not forcing you to tell me anything. I'm just really confused. I want to let you know that you can trust me, and Mel and Callie too. We're here for you."

Kevin didn't reply, he just sighed again. That hurt. I guess he didn't trust us as much as we thought he did. He toyed with his phone and then turned it on.

"I'm convinced you were going to let me keep that forever," I said, looking at his phone. "That reminds me, I accidentally unlocked your phone yesterday. I saw some of your messages. Sorry about that."

He simply nodded and I felt tears rising to my eyes. They were sad tears and also tears of anger. Sad, because I was scared of losing my best friend and angry with Ashton for causing it.

"Don't worry though, it was just a meeting reminder from Jackson." I stood up and headed towards the door.

I looked back at Kevin. He didn't look up. He was just concentrated on staring at his phone.

"Aren't you wondering how I know Jackson?" I asked.

Only silence answered.

"I guess you already know. Since you know where I went with Ashton... you probably know everything related to Ashton while I'm just left in the dark."

I was fighting back the tears. I didn't like to cry, and I especially didn't want to start crying right now. However, my voice betrayed me by cracking during the last sentence. A stubborn tear slipped from my eye. I spun around and quickly pushed the door open, but I didn't get to step through.

As I was about to exit, I felt someone pull me back. Kevin's arms wrapped around me in a loose but comforting hug.

"I'm so sorry, Liz," he mumbled heartbreakingly into my hair. "I didn't mean to make you cry."

He spun me around so that I was facing him. His blue-grey eyes searched mine sadly and he wiped a few tears from my eyes. "Please forgive me."

My lips parted in surprise. Just a few moments ago he wouldn't even respond and now he was apologizing?

Before I could answer, he continued. "I do trust you. And I trust Mel and Callie too. I always will," he paused and grimaced. "It's just that I really value our friendship... and I didn't want to scare you away with this."

"Kevin, what are you talking about? You couldn't scare us away, even if you tried."

"It's time I told you the truth. Ashton already let the cat out of the bag."

"You don't have to keep apologizing to me! I'm not angry with you. I guess I've just been stressed about this lately and I got a bit emotional," I blushed. "You don't have to say anything if you're not ready."

He shook his head. "I want you to know. Besides, you would have found out anyway. I guess it's the right time," he smiled.

I cocked my head to the side. What was he about to say?

"Liz, allow me properly introduce myself. I am Lord Kevin, rank Beta. I'm an Origen."

-----------------------------------------------------------

!