Halloween was officially a week away and Marissa had already planned we were going to a party. There were three kids that we knew of that were throwing parties that day but we were debating on whose to go to.

"What about Kevin?" Jax suggests as he takes a fry off of my plate. "You know he throws good parties."

"He's not throwing one this year. It's just Justin, Chris, and this other kid I forgot his name." Marissa tells him.

"Max," I say and Marissa nods her head. "I think Justin's party is going to be good. If you're dragging me to one it's going to be his."

"What are you going as?" Jax looks at me.

I look at Marissa and press my lips together debating if to tell him or not. I knew he was going to have a fit once he sees it so I decided to make him wait.

I wouldn't want him to force me into buying a different one right before the day of.

"It's a surprise." I throw him a playful wink.

"Ah, come on," he pouts. "Maybe we can match."

I shrug, watching as Marissa giggles as she looks at us. "You guys are so cute."

Feeling my cheeks heat up, I look away from Jax and hide my face behind my hair.

"Oh, come on." Jax chuckles. "You don't have to turn away." He grabs my face softly and quickly pecks my lips before anyone can see. If word gets out to my brother that Jax and I were seeing each other we'd never see the light of day.

"Jax," I smack his arm. "Not in school."

He shrugs, continuing to eat my fries. "No one even saw."

"Still, Hunter can't know."

"She's right," Marissa says. "Don't let him catch you or this," she points between us. "Is over before it even starts."

Jax and I hadn't made anything official yet but we agreed a few kisses here and there wouldn't hurt anyone. He had made it clear he wasn't going to take no for an answer on the date and would be picking me up Friday night.

As many times as I asked him where he was taking me he wouldn't tell me. It only made me more nervous. We've never been on an official date and all I could think about was what if it went awful.

"Well," Jax shifts over and stands up. "Speaking of Hunter, I have to meet up with him before the bell rings. We're going over the game tomorrow with the guys."

"Oh, yeah I forgot your season starts tomorrow," Marissa says excitedly. "Who are you playing against?"

"The Lions," He rolls his eyes. "It's going to be an easy win. We beat them last year twenty-five to ten."

"We'll be there." Marissa says.

Shooting her a confused look I shake my head and look up at Jax. "I don't think it's a good idea."

"Why not?" Jax questions. "It's not like anyone's going to know you're coming for me. You should come. I want you to. For moral support, you know."

Chuckling, I give him a smirk. "Mhmm, moral support."

He laughs and ruffles my hair before saying our goodbyes and he runs off out of the cafeteria.

"I think you need to tell Hunter about you and Jax." Marissa says as soon as Jax is out of sight.

I shake my head, shoving a couple fries in my mouth. "He'll never allow Jax to be with me. He wouldn't even let us be friends."

"You're nearly seventeen, Emma. He can't control who you date."

"Yeah, but Jax and I aren't even dating." I shrug. "What if I tell Hunter and nothing happens between us? All the drama for nothing. Anyways, I don't know if Jax and I will be anything more than a fling."

"Shut up," Marissa rolls her eyes. "He's practically in love with you."

My eyes shoot open at the thought of Jax ever being in love with me. I didn't even know if I saw him that way. I knew my feelings for him were strong but nothing enough to be in love. At least not yet.

"He's not in love with me," I shake my head. "I still barely believe he likes me. How am I supposed to believe he's in love with me?"

"I see it," She smiles. "It's in the eyes, Emma. Trust me, I see it."

- -

I got home to the fresh smell of my dad's cooking. I was slowly getting used to him being home more and more everyday. I used to love coming home and smelling fresh cooked food and hearing my moms laugh coming from the kitchen.

Smiling to myself I throw my bag on the couch and walk into the kitchen to see my dad slicing tomatoes.

The moment he sees me he gives me a warm hearted grin and orders me to help him make the salad.

He had music playing from his phone and we both bopped our heads to the rhythm as we cooked in silence. I felt a rush of peacefulness wash over me as I stood next to him.

"Make sure you call your brother and tell him to be home before seven." He says as he walks over to the cabinet.

I continue cutting the tomatoes and put them to the side. "Why? Is someone coming over?"

It was strange that my dad would be inviting anyone over especially for anything that wasn't work related. My mom was mostly the one who brought friends over for dinner.

"Just a friend from work." He mumbles.

"Oh," I furrow my eyebrows and look back at him. "Is it Gale?"

I see his shoulders tense up as he turns back to me but avoids eye contact. "No, not Gale."

"Gerald?"

"No," He hesitates before continuing. "Not Gerald."

"Okay," I awkwardly chuckle. "So, who?"

He sighs, placing the can he had in his hand down on the counter.

"It's Joyce."

I stop cutting and look over at him with a questioning look. "Is she new at work? I've never heard you mention her before."

He shakes his head. "No, no she's not new."

"Oh, okay." I finish cutting the tomatoes and starts cutting the cabbage into small pieces.

"I've been seeing her." He says out of nowhere.

"What?" I put the knife down.

"I've been seeing her." He repeats.

"What do you mean seeing her?" I furrow my eyebrows. "Like at work, right? You see her at work a lot?"

He shakes his head, not daring to look up at me. "No, not at work. Like...outside of work too."

I shake my head and move away from the counter as I stare at the back of his body. My eyes were already filled with tears when he turns around and presses his lips together into a tight smile.

"H-How long?" My voice cracks.

"Emma," He sighs.

"How long, dad?"

He runs a hand down his face and bites down on his lips. "A few weeks."

Nodding, I click my tongue and rush out of the kitchen, ignoring my dad's voice calling out for me. Suddenly every inch of this house was closing in on me.

My heart began pounding against my chest and my breathing picked up. Locking myself in my room, I slid down the door and brought my legs up to my chest, hugging myself.

As many thoughts flooded my mind, I found myself being drowned with memories of my childhood. Pictures of my mom came flooding in and soon were replaced by ones of Jax.

Right now, he was the only one who came to mind that I needed by my side.