The door swung open. I immediately turned the flashlight off my phone. My heart was nearly out of my chest and I was on the verge of tears. Why hadn't we called the police?

"Alina?" I heard a familiar voice. It was Jay.

I let out a sigh of relief. I sank down to the ground, realizing that my heart was still pounding. What if that had been someone else?

He closed the door and began walking up the stairs. His footsteps were heavy, and when he came close enough I could smell the alcohol. He was clearly drunk.

"You scared the shit out of me!" I whispered. "You couldn't have called before you began trying to knock the door down?"

"I couldn't find my keys or my phone at first. But they were actually in my pocket." He chuckled, slurring his words.

"You were driving in this state?" I said. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

His eyes darkened. "Stop bossing me around. You're so uptight." We weren't whispering anymore.

"You could've died!" I yelled.

"Well I didn't!" He said. "And who's this?"

Britt looked up at him before standing up. "I'm Alina's friend."

"Were you really that scared?" He said, a playful gleam in his eyes. He ssmed to have forgotten that he was supposed to be rude to me. He was making fun of me that I had to have a friend over tonight.

"No." I lied, and began chewing my lip.

He was now so close to me that I could see his pupils, even in the dark. "You're lying." Jay whispered.

My breath hitched in my throat and I found myself unable to breathe. He eventually moved away, after a few moments, and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in.

"Goodnight, Alina."

Jay then took off his jacket and let it fall to the ground in the hallway, before going into his room. I sighed and picked up his jacket and went into Jay's room. He pulled off his shirt before going into bed. I placed the jacket on the chair in front of the desk. I wasn't sure if he knew I was in here, but nonetheless, he went right to bed.

"Goodnight Jay." I said. But he was now sound asleep.

Britt and I couldn't sleep for a while after that scare. We let Buddy out and crawled back into bed, and talked for a bit afterwards.

It was nice to finally have a friend. I didn't know if Jay and I were friends. At times it felt like we were, but sometimes it was as if we hated each other.

We fell asleep after talking for a bit.

When I woke up the next morning, Britt was already up, and ready. I rolled out of bed and strode over to the closet, looking for something to wear. I couldn't decide and asked Britt to help me.

"You have so many cute clothes!" She exclaimed. "What do you mean you have nothing to wear?"

I sighed and laughed lightly. "I don't know, to be honest."

Britt and I had a similar taste in clothing. She picked out a black crop top and high rise distressed shorts. It was plain, but I probably wouldn't have picked it out.

"Cute." I said, before changing out of my pajamas into the outfit. I washed my face and tried to think of a way to style my hair. It wasn't as long as Britt's, but I still had something to work with. I ended up leaving it down.

Britt and I walked downstairs. I nearly fell down the stairs and I saw Britt chuckle at my expense. I couldn't help but laugh.

We made our way into the kitchen. Jay was already there, sitting at the table and looking at his phone. His hair was messy and he looked tired. Jay looked up when he heard us enter.

"Hey." He said tiredly. He rested his head on his arms on the counter.

"Hi." I replied in unison with Britt. "Weren't you supposed to be gone all night?"

"Yeah," he began. "Didn't really work out." He didn't include much detail so I pushed him no further.

"You go to Brunswick, right?" Jay spoke up, looking at Britt.

"Uh, yeah." She said, a grin creeping up onto her face. "You know me?"

"I've seen you around."

Britt and I decided on pancakes for breakfast.

"You want some?" I asked Jay, holding up the box.

He nodded before dozing off on the counter.

I began looking through the fridge and pantry for all of the ingredients. Once I found them, I began putting them all in the bowl and Britt mixed everything together.

Soon enough, we finished the task without making too much of a mess. Britt began eating when she got a text.

I noticed that her eyes scanned the phone for a moment. "Ugh, I've gotta go." She said, and gave me a quick hug. "I'll see you soon!"

I said bye to her and walked her out the door before going back to the kitchen.

I gently shook Jay, who had fallen asleep on the counter.

"Hmm?" I looked into his grey eyes, which were barely open, and noticed how tired he really was.

"You should get some more sleep." I said.

He shook his head. "I'm up."

"Yeah," I laughed, "the problem is staying up."

He mumbled something I couldn't hear. "Come on." I said. "Let's go upstairs."

He sighed and followed me upstairs. I went into his room, and gestured towards the bed.

"I'm not five," he said.

"Yeah, I know. Even five year olds make better choices."

He rolled his eyes and got into bed. It wasn't even a minute when I saw him doze off, with the faintest smile on his lips. I couldn't help but smile at his expression. He looked so peaceful.

I went back into my room and FaceTimed Erin.

"Alina!" She said. "I already miss you."

I chuckled. "I miss you too. Sucks that I have to spend the whole summer here."

She shook her head in mock disapproval. Her shoulder length red hair moved in synch with the movement. "So what's it like there? How are the two?" Erin said, talking about Mr. and Mrs. Von Baron.

"They're super nice. Not home at the moment, so I'm alone with Jay."

"Who's Jay?" She asked.

I realized I'd never mentioned him to her. "He's their son. And he's my age too. A total opposite from his parents though- he can be really rude. But he's also nice. If not for his attitude most of the time, he could be really sweet."

"Is he cute?"

I nodded. "Very." I adjusted the pillow beneath my head. "How's everything in Texas? Is there anything I missed?"

She let out a laugh. "Brooke Ethers got arrested for drunk driving." I didn't like Brooke much, so I let out a laugh myself. But she could've ended up much worse.

"And Griffin admitted he's still into you." Erin said, her expression changing. Erin and I had almost ended our friendship after I dated him. She and I had liked him all of junior year. Just when I was going to break up with him as not to risk never speaking to Erin again, he dumped me first. So it was a surprise to me that he apparently admitted that he still likes me.

I tried to remain neutral when I said "really?"

Erin nodded. "You're not going to date him or anything like that, right?"

"Why does it matter?" I said.

"Because I still like him."

"Would you date him if he asked you out?" I found myself asking. She was being a bit selfish, but as was I, risking a friendship over a guy.

"Yeah, probably." She said.

"Maybe I like him too. How come you have a claim on him all of a sudden?" I said in a harsh tone.

She looked taken aback. "Because I do. I like him too, you know. You're being selfish."

My mouth dropped open. She was such a hypocrite!

We were on the verge of another fight, for virtually the same reason. I decided to end it right there, or at least temporarily.

"Bye, Erin." I said, and ended the FaceTime call.

I couldn't believe that we were doing this, again. I was going to break up with my boyfriend for her, and now she's acting like she has some sort of hold over him. The constant fighting I'd endured with people in my life was giving me anxiety. After a few episodes of Grey's Anatomy, I decided on taking a swim in the indoor pool to relax.

I rummaged through the closet to find my swimsuit, as I had forgotten where'd I'd put it. I managed to find it, and quickly changed. I grabbed a towel and headed into the basement.

I took off my oversized tshirt and eased myself into the water. The water was a decent temperature. I wouldn't call it warm but it definitely wasn't cold.

The room was illuminated by a few lamps on the walls and lights in the pool, so it felt almost as if I were in one of those crystal caves. All of my worries melted away for a moment, and I was able to relax in this peaceful atmosphere.

I was able to relax until Jay decided to cannonball into the pool, soaking me in the process. I was trying not to wet my hair, but I should have known that wouldn't be a possibility.

"Hey." He grinned once he resurfaced.

I grinned. "Not tired anymore?"

He scoffed. "I wasn't even tired. I could go days without sleep."

"Sure." I said before submerging myself into the water. I touched the bottom of the pool before resurfacing. Jay had apparently done the same, as he came up moments after me.

I climbed out of the pool and smoothed my hair.

"You're leaving?" Jay asked, with a frown on his face.

"I just got here, and so did you." I laughed. I took a running start before doing a flip into the pool. I landed with a splash.

"I see you." He smirked before easing out of the water. I watched his muscles contract as he pulled himself out of the pool. He flipped in midair before diving into the water.

We went at this for a while before just relaxing in the pool. I could see myself having a great rest of the summer with Jay.

I was ready to head back upstairs when I decided to do one final flip. I climbed out of the water and prepared to jump in. I took a running start. I was almost at the edge when my ankle gave in and I fell, scraping my knee against the floor. I winced in pain. I dared to look at my knee, which caused me to wince even harder as I had scraped it pretty badly.

Jay realized what had happened and instantly rushed out of the water to help me.

"Alina! Are you okay?"

I nodded and tried to stand up. My entire knee hurt, as all of my weight had been centered to that one spot. I shakily stood up and began to walk out, slowly, after grabbing all of my things.

Jay sighed and lifted me into his arms, carrying me bridal style up the stairs and into the bathroom in his room. He pulled out a first aid kit from the cabinet under the sink and began tending to my injury. The only reason I had trouble walking was because a few months ago I'd broken my kneecap during field hockey. But I should be fine.

When Jay was done cleaning up my knee, he wrapped it and stood up.

"You're good to go." He said with a grin.

"Thanks." I smiled. I was able to walk back to my room now.

I took a quick shower to rinse off all of the pool water and changed into a large shirt and pajama shorts.

I realized I'd left my phone in Jay's bathroom, and I had promised to call my parents before ten, to tell them how I'm doing. It was nine fifty six and I knew they'd freak if I didn't call them.

I took a deep breath before going into Jay's room and knocking at the bathroom door.

"What?" He yelled.

"I need my phone!"

"I can't hear you!"

"I need my phone!" I yelled as loud as I could. No wonder he could barely hear me. I had a hard time hearing myself, as his shower was so loud. I heard the door downstairs open. It was probably one of the maids or perhaps Jacob. Or maybe Jay's parents were home.

"Come in!" He yelled back.

I hesitantly turned the knob and stepped inside. The shower curtain was dark and it was closed, so I couldn't see anything. I checked the counter for my phone, but it wasn't there. It wasn't on the toilet seat either, or any other obvious spot like that. It occurred to me that I placed it on the ground when Jay was cleaning up my knee. I picked it up off the ground when I heard a knock at the door.

"Jay, are you in here?"

It was his dad. Jay peeked through the shower curtain and made eye contact with me. I didn't know what to do.

"Yeah." Jay replied.

"Is my cologne in here? I know you use it sometimes, and I really need it."

"Uh," Jay said. "I don't think so."

"I'll just check really quick, don't mind me."

The doorknob clicked and I jumped into the shower. I didn't know what else to do.

His dad would ask what I was doing in here and I wouldn't just be like

"Oh yeah I just needed my phone."

I didn't want to come off as if I was trying to get with their son or that I was a slut.

I looked at Jay, who mouthed what the fuck?

Your dad.

He nodded in understanding. This was the most uncomfortable situation I had ever been in. I didn't look anywhere but at Jay's face, who was smirking. I was blushing profusely, and it didn't help matters that his dad had been rummaging through the bathroom for some time now.

"Dad, it's not in here." He called out, before rolling his eyes. I looked at him as he tilted his head to listen to his dad's response. I was getting quite wet but held my phone under my shirt so that it wouldn't get ruined.

"You sure?"

"Positive." I watched as the waters cascaded down his chest and how his dark hair fell over his eyes. He was still smirking at me, and I just ended up looking away.

His dad left and I immediately got out from under the shower.

"What if your parents see me leaving your room? Wouldn't that seem weird?"

"Not as weird as you trying to shower with me." He laughed. "Damn Alina, you could've just asked if you wanted to see my-"

"Shut up." I cut him off. "You know what your dad would've assumed had he seen me in here."

"I have girls over all the time, I doubt that it would've been a problem."

I tried not to let that get to me. But why should I care, anyways. "Yes he would. I'm a guest, not one of your prostitutes that you hire."

"They come to me." He said with a sly grin. I rolled my eyes.

I decided to take the chances. Better to be seen in his room then caught in the bathroom while he's showering.

Thankfully his parents didn't see me, and neither did anyone else. I changed into dry clothes before climbing into bed. Before I closed my eyes, I called my parents to check in. They were worried since I didn't call, but I assured them everything was alright. I hung up after saying goodnight. I went through my texts but one particular message stood out to me.

I miss you.

-Griffin