My vision abruptly went black when a warm pair of hands covered my eyes, causing me to go blind. I started, sucking in a breath of surprise. Someone let out a low chuckle from behind me. “Guess who?”

Immediately I recognized his voice. “Arden?”

“Bingo.”

I paused for a moment, waiting for Arden to pull his hands away from my face. When he didn’t, I frowned. “Are you going to remove your hands?”

“When I do, don’t look until I tell you to,” he responded, pulling his hands away.

“Why?

“Just because.”

Bemused, I did as he commanded, keeping my eyes shut. Arden was humming to himself as he proceeded to do whatever he had planned. After a few moments of silence, the sound of something being placed on my desk broke it.

“Okay, done,” Arden told me. “Open your eyes and look down.”

My eyes snapped open and my gaze dropped to my desk. Lying on top of my planner was a small black box. Arden was grinning at me when I turned back to him, furrowing my eyebrows. “What is it?”

“Open it,” he told me excitedly. “It’s a gift!”

“A gift?” I echoed in surprise, picking up the small box. “Why?”

Arden waved his hand. “Don’t worry about it. Just think of it as an early Christmas present— or are you Jewish?”

“I’m not Jewish,” I told him, still holding the closed black box. My fingers drummed on the outside nervously. Why did Arden get me a gift?

“Open it!” Arden repeated urgently. “Come on!”

I smiled at his eagerness. “Okay, okay. You do realize it’s weird buying a present for your teacher, right?”

“Whatever. This is a present between friends. Not pupil and teacher.”

When I took off the cover of the box, my eyes widened in surprise. Inside was a silver necklace with a pendant made out of what I assumed to be Emerald— although I hoped it was some knock-off gem. My gaze returned to Arden, who was still grinning like the Cheshire cat.

“You got me a necklace?” I stated in disbelief. “Arden, why—”

Arden cut me off. “I didn’t buy it.”

“Did you steal it?”

Arden pursed his lips at me. “No. I don’t steal things. That was my grandma’s.”

My mouth dropped open. Immediately I dropped the necklace back into the box and pushed it towards Arden. “I can’t take it.”

He firmly put his hand on mine, pushing it back. “Yes, you can. And you are. Harley, do I look like the type to wear such a girly necklace?”

“This is your grandma’s!” I argued, straightening my arm. “I’m not taking it!”

“Just take it!”

“No!”

“It’s rude not to accept a gift!”

“But it’s your grandma’s—”

Arden gave me a hard look. “Harley, I want you to have it. Please. My mom doesn’t deserve it and I’m afraid I’ll lose it.”

I gave him a helpless look. “But Arden…”

“It’s just a gift, Harley,” Arden said in exasperation. “It’s not like I’m asking you to marry me. Think of it as… proof of our friendship?” He raised an eyebrow.

I couldn’t help a smile from slipping onto my face. “Proof of our friendship, huh?”

“Yep,” Arden responded with a grin. “Now you have no choice to take it.”

“Guess so.”

Arden scooped the black box from my hand, pouring the necklace into his palm. He came back around the desk and stood behind me. “Move your hair,” he ordered.

I quickly pulled my hair up and Arden brought the necklace around my neck, clasping it in the back. My hair fell back around my shoulder and I looked down to see the bright green gem lying on my chest. “It’s such a pretty color.”

“It’s the color of your eyes,” Arden informed me, moving back to the other side of my desk again. “That’s why gave me the idea to give this to you.”

“My eyes definitely don’t look like this.”

“Yes they do.”

I shook my head. “Not-uh.”

“Harley, we promised not to lie to each other,” Arden stated, letting out a sigh.

My heart skipped a beat and I stared at Arden in shock. How did he figure out I was lying to him? My mind raced, thinking of excuses. Would he be okay with the fact that I couldn’t tell him because people couldn’t know my true age?

“So to keep that promise, I wouldn’t lie about your eye color,” Arden continued, rolling his eyes at me. “They really are that pretty.”

I blinked. So that what’s he meant. A breathy chuckle escaped my lips as my heart calmed down. “Whatever you say, Arden.”

He beamed at me, taking a seat on the edge of the desk. Guilt washed over me again as I watched his amiable expression. How could I lie to him? He was so honest with me— so honest it didn’t seem believable, and yet it was. And now he was giving his late grandma’s necklace to me… I didn’t deserve it. Arden deserved to know the truth. I pushed myself away from my desk, abruptly standing up. Arden looked at me in surprise.

“What’s up?” he asked.

“Stay here,” I ordered. “I’ll be right back. I have to talk to my uncle.”

Arden gave me a confused look, but before he could ask anything I was already halfway out the door. The hallways echoed with my hurried footsteps as I hastened towards the principal’s office. To my luck, no one besides my uncle was in there when I entered. He looked up at me curiously as marched up to his desk.

“I want to tell Arden I’m seventeen,” I told him breathlessly.

“No.”

I blanked at my uncle’s quick response. “What?”

My uncle shook his head, letting out a sigh. “Harley, what did I tell you at the beginning of the year? You can’t let anyone find out your age—”

“But Oliver knows!”

“He found out by accident,” my uncle reminded me. “He wasn’t supposed to know.”

I frowned at him. “Arden would keep it a secret.”

“It doesn’t matter. You can’t tell anyone, Harley. If he ends up telling everyone you’d have to be fired.”

“I’m trying to tell you he won’t tell anyone!”

“You don’t know that for sure.”

“Oliver hasn’t told anyone,” I challenged. “And he’s more likely to than Arden.”

My uncle gave me an impatient look. “Look, Oliver’s a different story. I’m not saying I don’t trust Arden, but I can’t afford to let you tell anyone else.”

“But Uncle Rob—”

“Harley,” he interjected in a firm tone. “I don’t know why you want to tell him so suddenly, but I can’t let you. You need this job. And I need you to have this job.”

I crossed my arms and pursed my lips at him. “Fine.”

“If I find out he knows, you’re going to be in trouble,” he warned me, giving me a wary expression. “I’m serious, Harley.”

“I heard you fine.”

My uncle sighed. “I’m sorry Harley. But it’s the way it has to be.”

“I know,” I responded, my shoulders sagging. I couldn’t afford to lose my job.

“I’m curious though, why do you want to tell him?” My uncle smirked. “Do you have a crush?”

Immediately I felt my face burn. “What? That’s not even— I don’t even— no!”

My uncle laughed. “Just teasing you, Harley.”

“Ha.” I sent him a hard look. “I’m going back to my classroom.”

He rolled his eyes at me. “Okay. Don’t tell him, Harley.”

“I won’t,” I snapped, twisting on my heel. “Though if anything happens, it’s your fault.”

“Anything happens?” my uncle echoed in a confused tone. “What do you mean?”

Ignoring him, I marched out of the principal’s office. I couldn’t not tell Arden— he trusted me. But getting fired was definitely something I couldn’t afford to do. This job paid more than any other one I’ve ever had. Arden would understand why I couldn’t tell him, wouldn’t he? A sigh escaped my lips as I trudged down the hallway to my classroom.

Arden was at my desk when I entered, the back of my chair to me. He slowly swiveled it around, a disturbing smile on his face, and a small glass of water in his hand. “Good evening, inspector,” he greeted in a fake Russian-French accent.

“Mr. Lector,” I responded, dipping my head in greeting. “You do know that part’s only in the trailer, right?”

Arden shrugged. “It’s got a nice ring to it. Where’d you go?”

“Um, to talk to my uncle about something,” I told him, shrugging. “Want to help me set up for next period?”

“Sure,” Arden responded with a grin, pushing his body out of my chair. “I’m here to help!”

The rest of the day passed in a blur. When seventh period came, I was thrown off guard— Oliver hadn’t shown up for sixth period, so I had forgotten to set up. Zak was the first person to enter the room, quickly followed by a loud group of boys. Zak grinned at me, almost skipping to my desk.

“Hey, Ms. Allen!”

“Hi, Zak,” I responded, smiling back at him. “What’s up?”

Zak shook some of his hair out of his face. “There’s no school on Monday,” he informed me, “so I was wondering if you wanted to go someone and do something? Tucker might come along too.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Tucker too?”

“I plan on inviting him,” Zak responded with a shrug. “You told us to get along, and we used to be friends… so why not?”

“No, no! That’s good! What day is Monday?”

“December second.”

For a moment time froze, my heart stopping. It felt like ice water had washed over me. “December… second?” I repeated quietly.

Zak nodded. “Yep.”

My mouth went dry. December second? It was already December? How could time have passed so quickly? How had this date sprung up so suddenly? My vision blurred for a moment as it hit me. December second would make the one-year anniversary of my parents’ death…

“So, do you want to do something?” Zak prodded, hovering over me. “I promise it will be fun.”

I licked my lips, trying to moisten them. “Um… I…” I hesitated for a moment. Would it be better for me to be alone? Or would it help to be with other people to take my mind off it? No, it wasn’t good to be alone. “Sure. Sounds great.”

“What sounds great?” Arden peered over Zak’s shoulder at me. “Some cake we are making today?”

“No, Zak wants to… Hey Arden, do you want to hang out with me and Zak on Monday?”

Zak’s eyes widened in surprise at me. “Wha—”

“Tucker’s coming too,” I interjected, sending Zak a warning look. “I think it’d be fun for all of us to get together.”

“Ms. Allen—”

“That sounds like fun,” Arden agreed, although he looked a little confused. “Kind of like old times, huh?” He patted Zak on the shoulder.

Zak flinched under Arden’s touch. “Just like old times,” he finally muttered, giving me a grumpy look.

I rolled my eyes at him. “Come on. I need to have fun on Monday—”

Suddenly there was a loud shout from the doorway. My eyes snapped towards it and landed on Joey and Joel in an intense shoving match just outside it. Joey grabbed the frame, trying to pull himself in the classroom while Joel yanked him back.

“I beat you fair and square! Let go!” Joey demanded, clinging onto the doorframe as if his life depended on it.

Joel scowled at his twin. “You used dirty tricks!”

“All’s fair in racing!”

“No it’s not!”

“Yes it is! Now move!”

“No!”

Joey aimed an elbow at Joel’s face, but Joel quickly blocked it with his free hand. Getting up from my desk, I hurried over to break the two of them up. “You guys! No hitting each other!”

Joey and Joel both paused for a moment to stare at me. Then Joey smirked. “You tell us what to do, we might just have to… kill you.”

Joel snickered while I flushed.

“Very funny,” I snapped, reaching forwards and grabbing Joel’s arms. “Let go of your brother.”

As soon as I pulled Joel’s arm off Joey, Joey fell forwards, knocking into me, and knocking me off my feet. We hit the ground hard, my head ricocheting off the hard, wooden floor. A low groan came from Joey, who had done a face plant, half on top of me, half off. Joel snickered from above us.

“Smooth move, teach,” he commented, stepping over us.

I winced, staring up at the ceiling while my head throbbed in pain. A sharp pain ran threw my right hand, making me cry out in pain. Seconds later Oliver appeared in my vision, looking surprised. He looked down and his eyes widened before he stepped back.

“Ow,” I complained, quickly yanking my hand away. “You stepped on my hand!”

Oliver gave me a flat look. “Don’t just leave it lying on the floor like that then. Joey, what are you doing? Get off her.” Oliver kicked Joey in the side. “You’re both going to get in trouble if you’re caught like that.”

“I fell,” Joey explained, pushing himself off me, and onto his feet. “By accident.”

Five hands suddenly entered my vision. Confused, I looked further up to see Arden, Zak, Joel, Joey, and Oliver all holding a hand out to me. My eyes widened slightly as I took the site in. Just two months ago, these five boys were throwing eggs at me. Now they all wanted to help me off the ground? A smile spread across my face as I grinned at the boys.

Oliver suddenly pulled his hand back, stepping over me, and heading to his seat. Arden glanced after Oliver with a frown, pulling his hand back as well. I reached my hand up and Zak, Joey, and Joel all grabbed it, pulling me to my feet in one swift motion.

“Thank you.” I stretched, trying to get the ache out of my back. Gently, I touched the back of my head to inspect the damage. A small bump had formed, and it panged when I touched it. “Ow.”

Zak chuckled. “Are you okay?”

The bell rang as I nodded. Seconds later Luke rushed in, his black hair covering most of his face. He knocked into me, his eyes widening in surprise. I stumbled back a step, flinging my hands out to steady myself.

“Sorry I’m late,” he apologized, reaching his hands out to steady me.

“Take a seat,” I ordered, letting a sigh out. “Before I end up dead.”

Luke shuffled to his seat, and Joel, Joey, and Zak followed suit. I made my way back to my desk, frowning slightly. Since I didn’t prepare anything for the class, I was going to have to let them have a study hall… And to me, that sounded dangerous.

Greg thrust his hand up into the air. “Ms. Allen? The soccer team has to leave. We’re supposed to just check in then head out.”

“Oh, um, okay,” I responded, pulling out my attendance sheet. “So who needs to leave?” Six hands shot up in the air. I stared at the six boys in surprise. “All of you are leaving?”

Luke nodded. “Yep. Today’s the big game.”

“Well good luck,” I responded, checking off David, Mason, Aaron, Jake, Tyler, and Luke.

“Thanks,” the group chorused, slinging their backpacks over their shoulder, then heading out the door.

I stared at the remaining six students. Oliver was glaring at his desktop, Arden was texting on his cell phone, Zak was grinning up at me, Joey was throwing paper balls at Joel, Joel was dodging Joey, and Tucker was staring at me with a frown. I half-smiled back at him.

“So,” I started, drumming my fingers on my desk. “I forgot to prepare last period, so there’s nothing to do today. You can use this period as a study hall.”

“Seriously?” Joey and Joel said simultaneously.

“Seriously.”

“Can I go to the library then?” Joel asked, looking excited. “I’ll start on my English essay.”

Joey shot his brother a glare. “I want to go to the library.”

“I asked first.”

“I thought it first!”

“You can both go,” I interjected, trying not to grin at them. “But if you two get kicked out, don’t blame me.”

Joey grinned. “We won’t get kicked out.”

“At least I won’t,” Joel added, grabbing his backpack off the floor. “See you Tuesday, Ms. Allen.”

“Bye guys,” I responded, waving as they left. Now I was left with Tucker, Oliver, Zak, and Arden. “What are you guys going to do?”

“I’m going to stay here,” Arden informed me, relaxing back into his seat.

Zak nodded. “Me too.”

Tucker nodded in agreement when I turned my eyes to him. When I glanced at Oliver, I found him glaring at me. I blinked in surprise, taken aback. He softened his look and quickly turned away from me. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“Oliver, can I talk to you in the hall for a second?” I requested.

Oliver didn’t reply, but he stood up and started towards the door. After giving the other three boys a one-minute finger, I followed after him. He leant on the wall next to the door, crossing his arms again.

“Where were you last period?” I asked curiously.

“I had to finish a math test,” he explained.

“Are you feeling okay?”

Oliver’s expression hardened. “I’m fine.”

I frowned. “Are you sure?”

“I said I’m fine.”

“Okay, okay,” I responded, holding up my hands. “I was just making sure…”

Oliver clenched his jaw. “Thanks.”

“Oliver, do you want to hang out on Monday?” I blurted. “Tucker, Zak, and Arden are coming too.”

Oliver’s eyes widened and he stared down at me in surprise. I blushed, scratching the back of my head. What was I doing? Oliver and Arden wouldn’t get along. But it seemed sort of rude to have his three old friends together without him.

“No.”

“What? Why not?”

“I don’t like Arden,” Oliver told me in a hard tone. “There’s nothing more to it.”

“Why don’t you like him?” I demanded, frowning at him. “You said yourself he’s a good guy. What did he do to you?”

He glared at me. “He didn’t do anything.”

“Then why aren’t you friends anymore?”

“People change, Harley.”

“Some for the worst, huh?”

Oliver gave me a flat look. “Guess so.”

Immediately I felt guilty. My shoulders sagged and I let out a quiet sigh. “I’m sorry, Oliver. I didn’t mean that.”

“Whatever.”

“Elliot’s coming,” I told him desperately. “He’ll want you to come. And I’ll need someone to help me look after him. The other three don’t really know him.”

His gaze met mine again, and I saw them soften slightly. “If I don’t go, you might forget Elliot’s there. Zak can be distracting sometimes.”

A smile began to grow on my face. “So that means you’ll go?”

“Only because I’m worried about Elliot,” Oliver muttered, turning away from me again. “And only because of that.”

I grinned at him. Whatever he said, I was glad he was going. Having the four of them together was definitely something I needed. There was no doubt that they would keep my mind of my parents’ deaths. “Want to bake some cookies for us then?” I asked, nudging his side with my elbow.

“No,” he growled, gently pushing me away from him. “I’m going back in.”

I followed Oliver as he went back into the classroom. Tucker, Arden, and Zak had five desks pushed together and were setting up some sort of board game. Arden’s attention turned to me and he grinned, gesturing for me to go to him.

“We’re playing Scattergories,” he informed me. “Want to play with us?”

“Where did you find that?”

Zak turned to smirk at me. “Secret.”

I laughed. It didn’t really matter where the found the board game. It was something we could all do together. “Alright, I’ll play. Oliver?”

He snorted. “No.”

“Come on, Oliver, it’s funner with more people,” Arden protested, turning to frown at his ex-best friend.

Oliver pursed his lips at him. “Funner isn’t a word.”

“It is in my dictionary.”

“Is stupid not included in it?”

I sent him a glare. “Oliver.”

Oliver sighed, coming over to the group of desks. “Fine. But just this once.”

Tucker gave Oliver a wary look before turning to me. I cocked my head to the side, grinning widely.