"Who is that?" An unfamiliar voice caused me to stir. My eyes only opened enough to take notice of a closing door.

For a second, I felt nothing but panic, horrified at the idea of being left alone. There was another pause in which I didn't know where the hell I was. Then it suddenly clicked. I was sleeping in Sam's room. Who was he talking to?

"No one." Sam responded. He left the door opened just a crack, I didn't think that he thought it would wake me.

"Sam." It was a female's voice. It was almost lyrical to listen to, as smooth as silk. "It's not a question."

I heard a faint sigh. "Just a friend."

I didn't even take offense to that, because no one else was supposed to know. However, it didn't stop the urge to scream about our relationship from swelling up inside of my chest. Instead, I pushed the urge away and continued to listen intently.

"You were sitting awfully close." I could hear the teasing from within his room. Whoever it was, they were clearly close to him. "Does my Sam finally have a girlfriend? Oh, I wish I got a better look."

Okay, so I may have taken a little bit offense to that one. She didn't know, but that didn't stop it from hurting so much. It only made me more anxious about potentially coming out. I wondered what Sam would say.

"No, you know I don't really date." His voice was slightly flat, as though he had fallen asleep for some time as well. It was ironic hearing him say that after what he said the last time I was awake. How long had it even been since then?

"A mother can dream." So it was his mom. A part of me wanted to walk out there and finally meet the woman who I had been unbearably curious about for what felt like an eternity. "So, who is it then?"

"Just a friend who's been having trouble sleeping." Sam sounded almost annoyed by his mother's prying attempts. If that was my mom, she would have barged straight through the door. I respected that she let him keep his privacy.

"Fine." I could hear the in her words pout. It sounded playful. "But why have they been having troubles?"

I was sure that Sam was aggravated by her questions, but I wanted to hear how he chose to answer them. I definitely felt guilty because it was not my conversation to be listening in on, but what could I say? I was a selfish little bitch. Hadn't we already established that?

"Just some problems with stress and things like that." Was all Sam willingly revealed. I had to admit, he was really good at keeping to himself. He was even avoiding the usage of pronouns.

His mom let out a small gasp. "That's horrible. Are they okay? Maybe you should invite them to stay for dinner."

I would only be willing to stay if Sam was cooking.

Wait, I forgot what I was even talking about about. I was still ridiculously tired, wearing some of Sam's clothes, nearly got caught with Sam holding me, and mildly irritable. The last thing I needed was a dinner with my boyfriend's parents, who didn't even know that we were together.

I would never tire of calling him my boyfriend, even if it was just in my mind.

"They're fine, just tried. I think we should just let them sleep instead of bothering them." Sam was dodging the hell out of his mother's questions. Honestly, he deserved a medal for that performance.

"Alright, Sam." Mrs. Warner gave one final attempt. "Are you sure they won't like a nice home-cooked meal, though?"

I could imagine Sam shaking his head as well as biting his lip. What did his parents think about that habit of his? "No, they just need some sleep."

She sighed in defeat. "If you insist. Let me know if they need anything."

I heard her footsteps receding down the hall. It sounded as though she was wearing heels. Did she really wear heels around the house? That did not sound easy.

The creaking of the door being pushed open again caused me to feign sleeping. I didn't know how, but it seemed to work. I could hear the door lock as Sam came back into the room. I was sure that he regretted leaving it unlocked in the first place. What were his parents even doing home so early?

The bed moved as Sam laid down again. The feeling of his presence so close to me instantly had me sleepy again. How did he do it? How did he make me feel so well-protected around him?

The feeling of his hand lightly caressing my cheek only soothed me further. The other rested carefully within the crook of my neck, creating a sensation I hadn't been expecting. I could sure as hell get used to that.

"Boyfriends, huh?" I heard him whisper to himself. "I'll do so much more for you, Sawyer."

My heart skipped every beat it was capable of skipping.

Oh God, what was that feeling?

•O•O•

"You're looking less like a zombie today." Dennis pointed out, shocking me with the mild comment. Usually it would have been something much more vulgar, such as you look slightly less like an old man's asshole today.

I would take what I could get.

"Yeah, I got some sleep." I had to fight the urge to look at Sam when I said it, even though I owed my less drowsy self to him.

Not only did I get a few hours of sleep at his house, but he called me after the fact, and we talked on the phone until I passed out. He was damn good at making me feel safe.

"Good, you'll need it for later." Oh, yeah. It was Friday.

The last time we had a meeting, nothing went wrong. Which only led me to believe that something was going to send the Rube Goldberg of horrible things off. I just hoped that Sam had enough money.

If his parents weren't the ones lending it to him, then he had to be getting it from somewhere else. But I spent almost everyday with him, so when did he even have time to get it? That was a very important question that I was definitely going to have to ask later.

"Hey, Sawyer!" A familiar giddy boy smiled up at me. There was a tall, olive-skinned boy following closely behind.

"Hey, Caden." I nodded, glancing over at Brian.

They seemed to be over the whole ordeal. I was pretty sure that Caden was way too caught up in blaming himself for the attack to even remember why he had been pissed off. Things definitely felt more normal now that they were back to being themselves.

One thing I noticed on the day where they weren't talking, was that Brian didn't say a word. Not even in the classes we shared. I knew that he was quiet in general, but I typically caught him saying things to Sam now and again. But there wasn't so much as a word uttered.

They had a very close relationship, but when I asked Sam why they were that way, he simply shrugged. He told me that he was the one who introduced them, and that they just somehow became really close afterward. Even he didn't know what exactly made Brian open up to Caden. Apparently Brian wasn't much for talking about himself. So even when someone got him to talk, it was usually about things that didn't pertain to himself.

Which I definitely picked up on. Ninety-percent of the time, he was either scolding or encouraging Caden. Those two had me so curious.

While Dennis was a very open person. He didn't hide his personality, and most people know the basics of who he was. And yes, Caden was the most talkative out of them all, but that was what made me want to know why he was that way.

"Earth to Soybean." A hand waving in front of my face made me snap out of deep thought.

Millie had a satisfied look on her face, both hands tucked neatly behind her back. I looked at her with contempt. "Don't call me that. What is it?"

She spared a glance at the guys around us. She had some quiz to make up for the first half of lunch, so that was why she wasn't around before. Millie was a very well-prepared person, who always tried hard to get things done on time. However, whenever she missed a day, she was the worst for putting off important tests and quizzes.

She missed a day right after the quarter started, and had managed to put it off for several weeks.

"So, I heard some girls talking in the hall-" She once again looked at Sam and his friends, probably because she didn't want them to hear her. "Why are you all watching me?"

I brought my gaze over to them, taking notice of their eyes on us.

Sam raised a brow. "Well, you just walked in out of nowhere. We're all curious what gossip you have."

Millie seemed to contemplate his words for a few seconds, deciding whether or not they were worthy of whatever news she had to share. "Fine, you guys can hear it."

None of them protested, so Millie continued. "So, heard these girls talking, right? And at first I was going to ignore them, but then I heard them say your name." That was when my interest peaked. "Apparently they saw you kissing someone at the party, and now they think you're up for grabs. I doubt you've noticed, but a lot of people find you hot. Especially since you've started spending more time around Sam and co."

There was definitely a disapproving look from Dennis at that last comment, but I hardly even registered it.

On one hand, people thought I was good looking, which was a good thing. But on the other hand, there were a lot more things I could list as cons.

One, I was dating a boy. As in, I wasn't straight and even less available. So I had to deal with a bunch of girls who thought that they could have a chance with a maybe-gay-but-honestly-somehow-still-confused boy.

Two, the last person I wanted to be associated with was Alyssa. She was a manipulative bitch, who I wouldn't mind never seeing again. But I was sure that I would eventually, since she was Sam's cousin. But because people saw us kissing - if that was what you could even call it - people would automatically assume that I was available to all.

Three, even if I wasn't dating a boy, I wouldn't be interested. I never understood the point of sleeping around. It was like drugs. You get a small high, only to have the weight of the world come crushing down on you all over again. It seemed counterproductive.

Four, I hated attention. It was one thing to know that people thought I was hot, and it was another to know that a portion of the school was constantly glancing in my direction. It just pissed me off and made me uncomfortable. Who were they to be watching my every move?

My gaze met Sam's long enough to notice his blatant annoyance. His arms were crossed, and his eyes narrowed with a pout. Nobody else was looking to see it, but I wouldn't have missed it for the world. It only filled me with happiness.

"So you're basically saying that chicks dig me?" I summed it up, raising a brow at Millie.

"Yup." She nodded. "Maybe you should give them a chance. You could become a chick magnet. However-" She dropped her expression into a frown "-you never told me that you hooked up with someone at the party."

"He didn't." Sam cut in, saving me from the turmoil that was about to occur. "My cousin was there, and just so happened to start flirting with Sawyer. Even after he told her no, she forced herself onto him."

I gave him a grateful look. "Pretty much."

Millie's jaw dropped. "I want her full name and address right now! No one is allowed to treat my Sawyer like that!"

She stormed over to Sam, staring pointedly at his face. He held up both hands as if to tell her to calm down. "Don'tworry, I dealt with it."

"Nope. I don't trust you, I want to meet her myself and give her a piece of my mind." She insisted.

"He's telling the truth. He yelled at her for it, and she never came near us for the rest of the night." I tried, attempting to convey to her that it was the truth.

She crossed her arms. "Doesn't change the fact that I'm pissed."

"But at least it's over." I breathed.

She rolled her eyes. "Where even was I?"

"Something about chicks?" I shrugged.

"Oh right." Her anger melted away like butter in a pan. "You should totally give some girls a chance."

I grimaced unintentionally. Not only did my loyalty lie with Sam, but like I said before, sleeping around was a waste of my time. And she already knew how I felt.

"How about no?" I shook my head. "If anyone tries to ask you about me, tell them no."

"Maybe. And as your best friend, I am legally obligated to be the first one to know who you've kissed." Her eyes were staring me down as though I was prey.

Oops.

"I didn't kiss anyone." An accusatory finger pointed in Sam's direction. "It was his stupid cousin who forced herself onto me. I had no interest in her whatsoever."

"Oh, I guess that does make a lot more sense." Millie said thoughtfully.

Sam rolled his eyes. "You act like it was my fault."

"I never agreed nor opposed."

Millie looked between us with a weird expression. What was up with her?

"What am I witnessing?" Her jaw dropped in awe.

Dennis jumped in. "That's what I've been saying! It's like a complete one-eighty!"

"I think it's fun." Caden added. "I like Sawyer and Millie." He let out a sudden gasp of excitement, tugging on Brian's sleeve. I noticed that he did that a lot. "Can we keep them?"

Brian rolled his eyes, but I could see the hint of a smile. "So they're pets now?"

"We can take them on walks and feed them and water them." Caden started bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Then when they get old and ugly, we'll just make them Sam's problem."

Sam scoffed, clearly enjoying the lighthearted turn that the conversation took. As obnoxious as Caden could be at times, he was also really good at making others feel at ease.

"Sounds good to me." Brian agreed with a certain nod.

Millie shrugged, smiling. "I don't mind as long as I'm Cade's pet. You are the most adorable person I have ever met."

Caden walked over and hugged Millie. They were definitely not together. Millie and Caden seemed to just instantly clicked after the party, and were now weirdly close. I was pretty sure that she only liked him because he was so childlike. It made him oddly endearing in the way a puppy was.

"Yay!" Caden laughed, jumping up and down. "I was never allowed to have pets growing up."

We continued to joke around until the bell rung. Sam's eyes met mine for a split second as I turned around. I knew that look. It reminded me of what was going to happen later.

The clock was still ticking down the seconds until we were to be forced to face our foes.

Who was going to take the brunt of the storm?

•O•O•