A couple of days had passed since the altercation at the movie theatre. My friend group was becoming more full-formed. Tabitha had taken to sitting with Lily and me during lunch every day, and as a result, so did Benny and Antonio.

Speaking of Antonio, we'd been seeing a lot more of each other. It became an unspoken rule for us to meet at the spot every day after school. We wouldn't do anything–just talk. It was hard to explain, but I felt like I wasn't being judged when I was with him.

As the days flew by and the weather got colder, things between Bob and Jo were getting more serious. In fact, he and Benny were over for dinner right now. While Jo had gone to fetch a bottle of wine, Bob looked at me from across the dining table.

He secretively whispered, "Rose, now that Jo's gone, I've been meaning to show you something."

I curiously looked at him. I also glanced at Benny for some sort of clue, but he only gave me an unhelpful blank look–rather typical of him.

"Sure," I finally replied Bob. "What is it?"

With a nervous though eager face, he pulled out a small, velvet box from his pocket. I gasped.

"Is that..."

I didn't even finish my sentence before he popped open the box and showed me the glistening diamond ring in it.

"Woah," I whispered. "You're thinking of proposing to Jo?"

Bob apprehensively nodded. "I'm asking for your blessing."

I gaped and glanced at Benny, who still had no expression. He must've already known about this.

Bob and Jo had only been dating for, what, three months? There was no denying their affection for each other, and frankly, Jo deserved to be happy after spending all of her adult years taking care of me. Thus, I recovered from my shock and began to smile.

"Of course, go for it!" I exclaimed.

Bob beamed at me. Just then, the resounding crash of a bottle breaking caused both of us to flinch.

"Somebody help me with these damn bottles!" Jo screeched from the kitchen.

Just as I got up, Bob kindly ushered me to sit back down.

"I'll get it."

I watched as he hurried out of the dining room and excitedly faced Benny.

"I guess that'll make us siblings," I teased.

"Step-siblings," he corrected me.

"I'm gonna be your sister."

"No you're not."

"And you're gonna be my brother," I said excitedly. "Brother Benny!"

"Not this again," he facepalmed.

I laughed at his chagrin. After a bit of harmless banter, Benny seriously asked me, "you think she'll say yes?"

"Jo?" I asked. After he nodded, I slowly answered. "There's honestly no way of knowing. She's never seemed like the type to be tied down to one specific thing, but Bob is good for her. I hope she says yes."

Benny's expression was unreadable. "I just hope she doesn't break his heart," he muttered.

I frowned and there was a small silence.

"I've been meaning to ask... what are things like with your mother?" I curiously looked at him. "I mean, did she and Bob divorce or something?"

"Bingo," Benny nodded, though he didn't look upset about it like most other people would when talking about the separation of their parents. "It happened when I was a kid. There's no complicated backstory to it—they simply weren't happy with each other. Dad's independent and all, but he's always wanted another shot at love. Maybe this is it."

Before I could reply, Bob and Jo came back in the room, giggling like the happy couple they were. Hopefully it would stay that way.

• • •

The next day after school, Lily and I walked out of the building together. Usually, I'd meet up with Antonio after the final bell and we'd head over to the spot on his motorcycle. However, he had skipped school today. There wasn't a reason behind his absence, other than pure laziness. Or so he told me.

"Alright, I'm gonna head this way," I said to Lily. "See you tomorrow."

"Tonight," Lily corrected, "we're meeting up with the others at Papa's Diner."

I nodded in recollection. By others, I knew Lily meant Benny, Tabitha, Antonio, and Romano. It was becoming a habit to hangout in the evenings together at the local diner. Burgers and shakes were the way to go.

"Right. See ya."

We waved at each other before separating. I walked towards the back of the school, where I'd parked my bicycle to prevent it from being stolen. Often, I'd find a group of kids smoking near the dumpsters. Perhaps a couple getting down and dirty against the wall. Though, there was no one today. No one except Buzz, Finn, and Lance.

They were playfighting and laughing. I bitterly shook my head, recalling my last encounter with the trio at the movie theatre. However much I wanted to give them a piece of my mind, I'd never win with three against one. Thus, I formed a plan to mind my business and keep it pushing.

Unfortunately, my bicycle was right next to them. There was no way I could grab it without them noticing me. Bracing myself, I sighed and made my way over. They instantly noticed my presence and their chatter ceased.

As I bent down to grab my bike, Buzz suddenly stepped onto it. I irritably inhaled.

"Could you get off my bike?" I asked through gritted teeth.

"Why should I?" Buzz asked.

I scoffed and stood up. My hazel eyes bulged once we met eye to eye.

"Jeez, did you get hit by a bus?" I wheezed.

His face was practically black and blue with bruises. Lance snorted at my comment, poorly concealing it as a cough. Who was he to laugh anyways? He and Finn both sported noticeable shiners. Granted, they didn't look nearly as injured as Buzz. I wondered how on earth Antonio managed to take on three guys and come back unscathed. Meanwhile, Buzz scowled at me.

"Laugh all you want, but you're the weak one. Getting your little boyfriend to fight your problems for you," Buzz sneered.

"Says the one who verbally attacked me five-on-one. Besides, Antonio is not my boyfriend," I pointed out. "What are you even doing here? You don't go to this school."

"We were actually waiting for Brown to show up. Figured this is where lowlifes like him hang out," he smirked, "but what we got is even better."

Buzz took a stride towards me, while his eyes glossed over in lust. I recalled the way he'd harassed me the first time we'd met, and I wasn't about to let it happen again. As hard as I could, I rammed my knee right into his groin.

He doubled over and howled in pain. My pride was short-lived when Finn grabbed my wrist, quick to jump in for his friend.

"You little bitch," he snarled, spit landing on my face.

I yelped in pain as he twisted my wrist. His sharp nails dug into my skin, and a droplet of blood trickled down my arm. Just then, Lance intervened.

"Alright, that's enough!"

We all glanced at him. Finn let go of me and I froze in place. Even Buzz, who was dramatically moaning on the ground, went silent to stare at his friend in confusion.

Lance slightly blushed and embarrassedly looked at the ground. "She's a girl... We're not supposed to hurt 'em."

I was positively stunned.

"Don't be a pussy," Finn snapped, although with his British accent, it sounded more like poosy.

I scoffed before facing Lance. "Nice to know one of you has a guilty conscience. Now I'll be off."

I flipped them off and grabbed my bicycle before pedaling away.

"There's no way you guys let her get away with that!" Buzz angrily groaned, still on the ground.

The three boys began to banter, but the noise of them faded as I rode into the distance. I laughed in victory, though my happiness subsided once I caught a glimpse of my right wrist. It was red and swollen from Finn's vicious grip, and I could see the imprints of his nails.

I grimaced and shook my head. When I finally reached the house, I burst open the door.

"How was school toda–"

"Good!" I abruptly hollered at Jo as I run up the stairs and into my room.

I peeled off my shoes and clothes, jumping into bed and landing on my wrist. A searing pain flared through the lower part of my arm and I gasped.

"Ouch!"

I tenderly inspected my wrist. I was at a loss of what to do, and decided to sleep it off. Perhaps a nice nap would heal the pain.

• • •