"And then what happened?"

"We just drove around. Talked about things..." I shrug.

"Something must have happened, you're literally glowing. I don't think I've ever seen you this happy," Heidi tells me with a small smirk.

"I love spending time with him. He's moody and intense, but I can't get enough of him."

"That's so cute," she sighs wistfully. "Makes my love life seem very boring."

"You're talking to me – the girl who has never done anything. Well, there was Fletcher, but we all know how that turned out."

"True that," she agrees.

We continue walking to our lockers, when Heidi's face hardens. "Incoming."

I panic, thinking it's Mrs Grainger, when I see Anita striding towards me, a look of death etched onto her face. Since Haze, she has backed off, which is insane, considering she's bullied me for years.

She suddenly stops, her eyes widening fearfully. She abruptly turns and strides in the other direction. Heidi and I exchange a confused look, when I feel a heavy hand rest on my shoulder.

I turn, smiling. "Hi."

"Hey," Haze says quietly.

He nods briefly at Heidi, who is beaming at him.

"Well, I'll leave you to it," she says, before strolling towards her locker, obviously feeling uncomfortable when it's only us three.

"How are you?" I ask him, reaching out and touching Haze's arm.

He glances down to my hand for a moment. "All right. You?"

"Good."

He glares down at the ground, as if not sure how to act around me, suddenly.

I reach for his hand and squeeze it. "Let's go to class."

He doesn't resist me holding his hand, which I like.

"I have a question for you and I don't want you to get upset or offended, okay?"

He sighs through his nose, already looking annoyed. "What?"

"Since you've missed so much of school, are you struggling with the work?" I gently ask.

He yanks his hand from mine, scowling. "I'm doing fine."

"Stop overreacting," I say calmly. "And answer the question honestly."

"Ellie," he warns.

"Answer the question!" I snap back, this new temper of mine continually shocking me.

"Yes. I struggle. Okay?" he growls, clenching his jaw tightly.

"Okay, that's all you had to say," I shake my head. "You had to do some education training in juvie, right?"

"Very basic shit," he mutters.

"Would you like me to help you with any classes?" I offer.

"No."

"Haze, stop fighting with me." I sigh. "It's tiring."

He presses his lips together, looking pissed. I ignore him. I walk ahead and slip into class. I go to the desk he always sits at. I place my belongings accordingly. He hovers in the doorway for a few seconds, before coming to sit beside me. He doesn't look at me as he does.

I want to smile, but I don't. He is a work-in-progress, that's for sure.

I take my time looking around the room. A few people glance towards us and Fletcher is frowning at me. I pretend I don't see it and return my focus to the front of the classroom.

"I'm... sorry."

"What was that?" I ask Haze, even though I heard him perfectly.

His fingers tighten around his pen. "I'm sorry for how I reacted."

"Thank you."

He closes his eyes for a moment, as if counting to ten in his head, before re-opening them.

"Remember when I said people like you don't tend to bring my anger out?"

"I do."

"I take it back."

I grin. "Funny."

The lesson starts and I try very hard to listen, but having Haze so close to me, makes that difficult. I am intensely aware of every move he makes.

"What are we doing tonight?" I whisper to him.

He arches an eyebrow. "We?"

"Yeah."

"You're going to get sick of me," he murmurs with an amused smile, which makes me happy. He is so moody.

I shake my head. "Impossible."

"You say that now."

"Who's talking?" Mrs Hatcher snaps, her beady eyes darting around the room, trying to land on a guilty face.

I press my lips together and look down at my work, making it look like I have been taking notes. Once drawing up blank, she continues her speech. I meet the cool, blue eyes of Haze and he gives me a lazy smile.

"I'll pick you up."

"I'll be waiting," I whisper, biting my lip softly.

***

"Do you want to help me make up some flyers for the fashion show?" Ma asks me, placing a pencil in her mouth as she flattens out a piece of cardboard across our dining room table.

"Oh, I would, but I'm... working on a project with Heidi. It's due soon and we're behind."

"You're behind?" she questions with a frown. "That's unlike you."

"I had to complete another assignment before this one." The lies keep building as I finish writing the last line of my homework, feeling terrible for not being honest.

"Oh, okay."

"Sorry, Ma. I will help you with them tomorrow?"

"That's all right, dear. Your school work always comes first." She assures me. "You need to keep you're 'A' average, to get into Westcom University."

"I know, I haven't forgotten," I smile. "I am still doing well. I'm ahead in all my classes – except for this assignment, of course. It's a partner job."

"It's lucky you and Heidi got paired."

"I thought the same thing," I say smoothly. "What date is the fashion show this year?"

"The 14th."

"Oh, that's soon. Isn't it a little late for posters?" I question.

"We have the last year's posters up with the new date on it, but they just don't look effective enough. I want to make some new ones." She explains to me.

"Oh, okay."

"Are you having dinner with Heidi?"

"Probably. Sorry, I should have given you more notice." I mumble.

"That's all right. Will you be late?"

I think of the dark night, his eyes, those lips...

"Yes, most likely."

"Don't work yourself too hard. You've been out a lot this week. Are you getting enough sleep?" she asks in concern.

"Of course, Ma. I'm great. Really." I begin to pack up my things, as Haze texts me, telling me he's here. "Are you okay?"

"Me?" she asks in surprise. "Yes, of course. Why do you ask?"

Because I saw you crying over a photograph of another man a few weeks ago.

"Just asking."

She smiles and realises what I'm referring to. "I'm fine, thank you Ellie."

I nod.

I try to keep my composure as I hurriedly take my things to my room, trying not to attract any attention to myself.

"Where's Pa?" I ask her, before leaving.

"In his study. He's busy," she tells me.

"Okay. Tell him I said bye."

"Will do."

I give her a smile, before darting out of the house. I run excitedly and throw myself into Haze's truck.

Hardly drawing a breath, I fling myself towards him and kiss him. He tastes of something I've never tasted before.

"Sorry. I've wanted to do that all day." I breathlessly tell him with a smile.

He shakes his head. "You're crazy."

He pulls from the curb and I settle back into the leather seat. I turn up the volume and sigh, liking his dark music. I don't know any of the songs or artists, but I don't really mind.

He hums as we head towards our place. We're in silence, but it's a comfortable one. I watch him drive as we near the skate park. He swerves off the road for a second, before shaking his head.

"Are you tired?" I ask him quietly, my heart rate spiking from the swerve.

"Yeah."

Instead of parking like he did last time, he reverses in, looking awfully tense and agitated as he does.

"What are you doing?" I question.

He hops out of the car, cutting the engine. I follow suit. He rounds to the back, where he undoes the tail gate. He covers the back with a blanket and pulls a plastic bag out of a cooler bag.

"Hungry?"

"Starving," I smile. "I didn't even smell the food!"

"It was sealed up," he tells me.

I jump up into the back of the truck and swing my legs over the side. He passes me a container of take-away Chinese food and a plastic fork.

"Thanks, you didn't need to buy me dinner."

He shrugs, looking embarrassed. I smile and don't push it.

After a few mouthfuls, I look over to him. He's silently gazing forward, hardly having touched his food.

"You okay?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Well, if you weren't okay, you could tell me." I gently say.

He nods, pushing his food around with his fork.

"I've noticed something." I say.

"What's that?"

"You don't smoke that much." I grin. "Much less than I expected."

"Well, you don't like it," he mumbles, his cheeks darkening slightly.

"You're cute."

He scowls, looking away and I laugh quietly. I take my time eating, savouring the taste. He slowly begins to eat more and soon enough; we both finish our half. I pack up the containers and neatly put them back inside the cooler bag. He leans heavily on the side of the car, looking strangely weak.

"That was delicious. Thank you."

He reaches around me and grabs a bottle of alcohol. There's not enough light to read the label, but the liquid looks dark and unforgiving. I frown as he unscrews the lid and takes a sip, not flinching at the taste of it.

"What are you doing?" I squeak. "You need to drive me home."

"We can worry about that later," he waves me off, taking another long mouthful.

I blink a few times as realisation sinks in. He has been quiet – quieter than usual. He had already been drinking before he picked me up. I just hadn't noticed. I hate that I am so naïve.

"You're not okay." I murmur. "Tell me."

He shakes his head, gripping the bottle.

"I don't want to talk, Ellie."

I nod, looking down into my lap.

He passes me the bottle. I stare at it with distaste. "No thank you. It's a school night."

"Just have some." He insists and when he looks at me properly, for the first time, I see that his left eye is dark, as if bruised.

Frowning, I pry the bottle from his hands. It's better in mine, than in his.

"What happened to your eye?"

"Nothing."

With his tone, I make the safe decision of not asking anything further.

With an encouraging breath, I raise the bottle to my lips. It feels cold and the alcohol is bitter as hell. Like nothing I've ever tasted. I grimace and cough a few times, it being far too strong for a light drinker, such as myself.

"That's disgusting." I gag, making an awful-looking face at it.

He laughs and it comes out dry and humourless. I wince at the sound, not liking this rough side to him.

He snatches it from me and begins to drain it. I pull at his arm, trying to get him to stop.

"Let's play a game." He says suddenly, taking a page from my book. "Truth or dare?"

He rubs his nose with the back of his hand and stares at me, challenging me to the game.

"Truth," I swallow.

"Why are you here?" he asks, his tone cold. "Why do you like being around me?"

I shrug. "I don't know if I can even explain it."

"Try."

I let out a breath. "All I know, is that when I'm not with you, I'm thinking about you."

He nods, not showing any emotion at my words.

"Truth or dare?" I ask him quietly.

"Truth."

"What do you like about me?" I whisper.

He rubs his face roughly, letting out a mixture of a sigh and a groan. "I don't know."

"There must be something." I press desperately.

"You're annoying and clingy and you piss me off sometimes," he grumbles.

"I said like, not dislike," I mutter, folding my arms across my chest.

"You're... nice, attractive, smart... a better person than me."

My heart swells at his words. He thinks I'm attractive?

"We're different, Haze. That's all."

He laughs. "That's one way to put it."

"I think you should put the bottle away, now," I tell him softly.

He rips away from me and furthers the distance between us. "Truth or dare?"

I sigh. "Dare."

"I dare you to take your shirt off." He drawls, smirking.

"What? It's freezing!" I blurt, my cheeks turning a scarlet red.

"I'll warm you up," he grins, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Pass," I grumble, tugging my jacket closer to me. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare."

I look at him. His eyes are wide and blood-shot. His lips are wet. I bite my own as I think of a way that will distract him from the alcohol.

"I dare you to kiss me."

He grins, dropping the bottle. He crawls over to me and shoves me back. I let out a yelp in surprise.

He tastes like alcohol. His hands are heavy on my body and his kisses are sloppy, nothing like we've shared before. I swallow uneasily and gently press against his chest.

"What?" he grunts, his hot breath fanning over my face.

"You're drunk."

"So?"

"I want to go home," I whimper, shoving him off me.

I scramble out of the car, feeling my cheeks warm. That was not a situation I was comfortable being in. I thought I could distract him, but he's too far gone.

"What's wrong?" he asks me, catching up with me easily. "Don't like seeing the real side of me?"

"How am I supposed to get home now?" I snap angrily, hugging myself. "You can't drive."

He gives me a one-shoulder shrug. I groan in frustration.

"I don't have my license with me, either," I say to myself and grit my teeth.

I storm back to the car. Haze stumbles after me. I help him into the truck. He collapses onto the tarp. He pulls out two pillows from the floor of the back seat. He's clearly done this before.

I begin to question what I should do. I can't stay here, but I can't leave him, either.

"Ellie," he groans, reaching for me.

"Yeah?" I answer quietly.

"Come here."

I crawl into the truck and pull the tailgate closed, cutting off the cool air. All I can smell is his intoxicated breath.

"Stay with me. Please?"

I chew at my lip. "I can't."

He rolls onto his back, his eyes pleading up to me. "Please."

I hesitate for a second, before I lay down beside him. He drags me close to him and faces me. He begins to stroke my hair.

"Don't give up on me, Ellie," he whispers brokenly and I feel my heart skip a beat inside my chest.

I feel my body sag with relief and tiredness.

"I won't."

He leans in and kisses me softly. I snuggle up to his chest and sigh, loving the feel of his warm, secure arms wrapped around me. It's beyond cold in the back of the truck, but his body heat is enough to keep me warm enough.

"You're beautiful, Ellie," he slurs, hugging me tightly.

I smile as I hug him back, before eventually fading into a deep sleep.

***

The sound of a driving car, makes me stir.

I rub my eyes and squint, morning sunlight streaking through the window. Since when can I hear traffic from my bedroom?

Blinking slowly, I peer around, confused.

What the...

I yelp when I realise where I am. A heavy arm lays across my abdomen. I look over to Haze. His face is peaceful as he sleeps. His long hair unruly and messy, hardly being maintained in its bun.

I gently prod his arm. "Hey, wake up."

He groans loudly.

I try not to panic. I'm meant to be getting ready for school. Ma is going to freak. I didn't come home last night.

"Haze!" I shriek, much louder than I intended.

His eyes snap open. "Fuck. Don't yell. My head hurts."

"We need to go!" I cry out, my heart hammering.

I fumble for the latch and leap from the car, my body shaking. I check my phone.

7:38am.

"Haze!" I shout, hitting my hand on the side of the car.

"Fuck off!" he snaps back.

I angrily climb into the car and slap his leg.

"Ow," he whines, sluggishly wiping his face. "What was that for?"

"Don't swear at me!"

He sighs. Slowly, he reels into sitting position. His eyes appear droopy as he gazes me at.

"Don't you need to have good attendance?" I ask him.

"Yep."

"Then you better hurry up or we're going to miss school!"

I re-exit the car and squint in the harsh, morning light, trying to keep calm about the fact I stayed the night with Haze.

Haze emerges behind me. He shrugs his jacket off and is left wearing a crinkled black shirt and ripped jeans, despite the weather being frosty.

"Hurry up! We need to go!" I urge at him, shaking his tattooed arm.

He grabs me. He pulls me close to him and kisses me. I freeze, my eyes wide as his lips move slowly and sensually. My body finally regains proper function and despite his reeking breath of last night's alcohol, I kiss him back.

"Now, we can go," he casually says, before walking around to the driver side, not seeming like he cares about our lack of time, at all.

I stand there, blinking, shocked. I shake my head and shut the tail gate, before running to the other side.

"What was that for?" I mumble.

"Well, it was to mainly shut you up," he rolls his eyes. "But because I wanted to."

Butterflies begin to swoop in my belly. I buckle myself in and press my fisted hand to my mouth, hiding my smile.

He parks out of sight from my house. I briefly kiss his cheek, before exiting the car.

"I'll see you soon?"

"Yeah."

I hurry to my house, feeling beyond nervous.

As I open my door, I take in a large breath, praying, I won't be in as much trouble as I think I will be.