The next day, in school, Madison feels a weight lift off her shoulder, as the last exam finally finishes.

There is a shout of joy and victory as the students celebrate happily, but Madison simply leans back against her chair, completely relaxed for the first time in forever. She chances a glance behind her, towards Nick's desk, and makes inadvertent eye contact with him. He winks at her and Madison quirks her lips slightly, thinking how his expression looks similar to the morning when she had unthinkingly reached to help button up his coat.

It had been disgustingly domestic, she thinks to herself, but there is not venom behind even these words, in her own mind. Madison realises that she hadn't even thought properly; she had just lifted her fingers to help him, letting his hands drift to fix her school skirt. Her cheeks flush, hot with pleasure, thinking of the cupcakes Nick had left for her, in her locker.

"Madison?"

Madison turns her gaze and her soft, fond smile drops instantly.

Lula is fidgeting awkwardly, staring at Madison almost hopelessly. Her hands seem to reach out, of their own accord, before she pulls them back, as though she knows Madison will not reciprocate a hug, right now.

"Is something wrong?" Madison says cuttingly.

Her gaze flickers briefly to her friends, who are sitting quietly in the corner.

The rest of the school had simmered, like boiling pots, the rumour mill chugging over the delicious thrill of the news. The queen of Redwood had seemingly fought with her closest friends, was roaming around, completely free and fine. It had done wonders for her popularity and most people just stared at her, wanting to be her more than ever, but increasingly, Madison is beginning to think that it just doesn't matter.

She can't think why she placed so much importance on being popular. Not when there are such delights to be had, like eating cupcakes and arguing with Nick.

"Madison, please," Lula says softly, staring at her with big eyes. "At least, talk to us."

Though Madison holds herself strong, she feels something within her crumble slightly at the helpless note in Lula's voice. She adores her friends and she would do anything for them, but Madison can't forget the sheer awfulness it felt to be herself, when Maria had spilled all apparent truth. She's still reeling from the pain it feels to have her heart beat, from remembering those terrible words which still sting so awfully.

Did they really hate her so much?

"I dare not," she says bitingly, instead. "Heaven forbid you all get offended by my rudeness."

"Madison," Lula says, her brows furrowed, "come on, please. I thought I was the drama queen –,"

"Oh, now I'm a drama queen?" Madison interrupts, though the words cut through her like the sharpest knife. "I'll add it to the list."

Lula's gaze is horror-struck. Her fingers are pressed over her mouth as though she hopes to take the words back in.

"I didn't mean to call you that, I swear," she begins heavily.

"Of course you didn't," Madison says spitefully.

She feels like a bitter, stuck thing, her stomach clenching uncomfortably at the sight of Lula's face as it crumbles. Madison begins to pack her things busily, into her bag. She turns her face away from Lula, ignoring her.

"Madison, please, just listen to us," Lula says. "We're not saying anything bad against you – please, Madison. We love you, sweetie, but –,"

"You're in my way," Madison says cuttingly, lifting herself from her seat. When Lula doesn't move, she moves herself. "Even Nick has better manners."

"Madison," Lula says, looking almost impatient now. "We're not trying to hurt you. It's just – wait. Did you just call him Nick?"

In her panic, Madison bolts.

*

"It was a joint effort, Mr Bates," Madison tells the teacher honestly. "I started out, working individually, but Nick's ideas and brainstorms were invaluable. Here, do you see I thought this way of working was better, but he thought I should use this method. In working together, we found out that the method of using questionnaires to create better analysis was more valuable."

Mr Bates is looking thoughtful, his gaze scanning the project that Madison had been scribbling on, with Nick's notes scrawled on. His fingers line against their collaborative notes, where Madison had written in her neat calligraphy and Nick had promptly ruined her beautiful notes, by scribbling all over it with black ink. She had almost killed him, before realising that he had actually made some sense, to her surprise.

The rest of the afternoon had passed in The Love Shack, with both arguing over different artists and analysis, with only Macy's name-calling interruptions. Madison had coloured herself surprised when Nick had told her that he had gotten Macy back her job and that the waitress was currently in waiting for an interview at his mother's company, a job that she had reportedly been working for, for a long time. Madison remembers staring at Nick, with something warm in her chest, before they had continued arguing again.

"It's impressive work, Miss Madison," Mr Bates admits. "It should help with your coursework folders, both of your coursework folders, I should say. Art is such a fascinating subject. I do like the addition of this painting, here." He lifts his head. "I also appreciate your reigning in our rather unruly new student."

"He's not a horse for me to tame," Madison snaps sharply, without thinking.

Irritation flares within her, before it's immediately snuffed out by a brief sense of panic. She's so startled and annoyed that her words fall out.

Mr Bates' jaw drops open.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Uh, I mean –," Madison falters, before she clears her throat, remembering herself again. "Actually, yes, I do mean it. Nick did his work himself and has been working hard in his lessons, too, as of late. Rather than putting him down for it, based on your stereotypes and prejudices, you should be supporting and encouraging one of the smartest students I've ever known."

She hates the thought that the teacher before her might think that she's attempting to manipulate him, to curry favour for Nick. Before, Madison would have no qualms about lying to the teachers. But now, she needs Mr Bates to understand that Nick is smart on his own terms, that he is working hard, without implying that it's to do with her, or her name.

"Miss Madison –,"

"And I know," she continues persistently, "that if he didn't have the Hawthorne name behind him, you wouldn't have given him a chance. If I didn't have the Sutton name, you wouldn't have looked twice at my project, either. And that's wrong. There is too much emphasis on names and money in this school and it's frankly rather dangerous, because there are very smart students, who go without encouragement and support, in these unruly years, when we need it most."

Mr Bates simply stares at her, raising an eyebrow.

"It seems, Miss Madison," he says, finally, "that you've learnt rather a lot more than just Gaudi and Picasso, this year."

Madison stares back at her teacher, thinking of her friends and her manipulations.

"It seems," she says faintly, "that I have."

*

When her friends corner her in the gazebo, Madison doesn't fight at all.

"Alright," Maria says decisively, putting her hands on her hips and staring Madison down, where she sits. "You're an asshole. I'm an asshole. We're both assholes and we were both wrong."

"That wasn't the line," Elliot tells her.

"Oh my God, Maria," Lula moans. "You had one job."

Audrey is not saying anything, but she is looking at Madison pleadingly.

Madison is sitting quietly, watching her friends argue above her. A flurry of thoughts flit around in her head, but Madison finds herself taking a breath and letting them go, one by one. In the end, she simply leans her head back against the seat, tilting her face up, and finds herself relaxing, for the first time in a long time.

"Madison?" Maria is looking at her, in concern. "Are you alright?"

Madison nods briefly, before staring up at her friends.

"I'm sorry," she says quietly, and her heart sinks a little when she sees the way her friends exchange startled, shocked looks with each other. "I was wrong. I know I'm rude and I'm awful, not to just everyone else, but you guys, too. You all deserve better than that. I know that when you tried to tell me that I was being hurtful, I should have listened. I shouldn't have made it all about me and I'm sorry for that."

"I'm sorry, too," Maria says, and she begins to cry, wrapping her arms around Madison. "I shouldn't have been so terrible to you. God, I didn't mean all those things I said, Madison."

"Yeah, you did," Madison tells her, chuckling lowly. "I deserved them."

"Oh my God, now I'm going to cry," Lula moans. "And I just fixed my make up!"

They embrace each other heavily, crying against each other, and Madison closes her eyes against Maria's back, letting out a sigh of relief. It's all finally over, she thinks to herself mutely, quietly. She doesn't need to tell them about Kyle or Lula's parents, because enough time has passed that it doesn't even matter anymore.

It's all over.

*

"Is this a trick?" Nick is asking the teacher before them, his brows furrowed.

Madison turns her head, slightly startled, from where she has been reading over her own project results, her lips pursed. She's rather pleased with her results, though it's not full marks. Mother hasn't said anything about her recent exams or test results, which is surprising but not something Madison's stupid enough to bring up.

"No, Mr Hawthorne," Ms Patel says. "Believe me, I'm not sure who is more surprised out of the both of us that you've passed this project, either."

"I seem to be passing everything," Nick says, his gaze lifted. "You're all spoiling me now."

Madison's lips twitch in amusement, before she can stop herself. God, she thinks to herself, a surge of affection flaring up within her, but Nick is such a goof.

Even Ms Patel is looking amused.

"You're actually putting in the effort, Mr Hawthorne," she tells him. "I have to commend you for that. You have turned yourself around, this year."

"Can't just give me a compliment, can you?" Nick tells her, and as she leaves, he pulls a face at her back.

Madison can't help herself, her slight laughter bursting from her lips before she can stop it. Nick's head lifts towards her and he realises that she's laughing, his eyes crinkling in delight. He makes another face at her and Madison attempts to keep her face expressionless, but Nick is such an idiot.

When Diana laughs, Nick turns his head. Madison frowns before she stops herself.

"You're really funny," the scholarship girl tells Nick, who blinks.

Her smile is warm and soft and Madison simmers angrily, without knowing why. Diana turns her chair slightly, scraping it against the ground, towards Nick. The idiot is still grinning at the scholarship girl, Madison realises, annoyed.

"Thanks," Nick tells Diana. "It's nice to be appreciated."

Diana laughs again.

"Can I see," she asks Nick, putting a hand on his arm, "what you did for your project? Let's see what one of the top students in the class got."

Madison bites out, vehement, "Stop being an idiot." When both Nick and Diana look up at her, she flushes horribly. "Does it look like I was talking to you?"

Quickly, Madison turns her back on them, though she burns with embarrassment. Her cheeks are warm and she's grateful when Maria sits down on her desk, the Spanish girl taking the time to throw a dirty look towards Diana.

"You passed, too?" Maria says, delighted. "Yes, bitch!"

"We've got to go out to celebrate," Elliot is saying. "I was thinking Monaco..." He breaks himself off quickly, his gaze flickering briefly towards Madison, before he amends himself. "Or that new club in town. We could go there."

Lula is nodding eagerly, as she paints her nails and ignores Ms Patel's protests that despite the end of the year looming ahead, it doesn't give the students leeway to ignore all school policies. Audrey quietly gives Lula her nail polish, but sits beside Madison, leaning against her, in that way that she does, when Madison knows her friend is feeling down. She knows it's because of Kyle and knows that Audrey needs time to heal, so Madison simply inclines her head towards Audrey and squeezes her fingers comfortingly, to let her know that she's there for whatever Audrey might need.

Lula's gaze drops to Madison.

"You know, sweetie," she says easily. "You're looking so much healthier lately. Like, body goals. Plus, happier, too."

Though Madison is slightly startled at the observation, she finds that it's true.

Ever since she let go of the diet, things have been sliding into place slowly and surely. She's been feeling so much better, eating Nick's food, and these days, with the weights off her shoulders, there's a slight sense of freedom that lingers at her touch, tentative and tempting.

Even Maria is nodding.

"What diet was it?" she asks. "I might try it."

Madison purses her lips.

"Don't. It wasn't a diet – it was torture," she tells them honestly, watching their eyes widen. Elliot's brow crinkles in confusion. "Just eat healthily, instead of starving yourself. That's what I learnt."

Elliot turns his head towards something in the back and his lips press together, in thought. There is something flickering in his eyes and Madison stiffens slightly, in defence, before she can stop herself.

"It's funny," he says slowly. "You and Hawthorne boy have learnt so much this year. The two of you are really similar, you know."

Madison colours.

"What – no, I mean –," she begins, before breaking herself off awkwardly, clearing her throat. Madison reaches for her water bottle quickly. "Don't compare me to Hawthorne boy. Of all people. I thought we were done being rude to each other."

Maria guffaws loudly, but Lula is nodding.

"I didn't want to tell you," she tells Madison, "but people were saying stupid stuff like the fact that you guys have all this pent-up sexual tension between each other and all this hate is really because you've got feelings for each other."

Madison swallows her water too quickly and promptly chokes. As Audrey helps her, Lula crows in triumph.

"See," she says, "I told you it was ridiculous."