I wake up feeling happy and freeze. I told Ashton that I liked him. I know!

I happily walk down the stairs and see my parents eating cereal. My mom glances at me and says, "There was a package outside addressed to you. I put it at the front of the door."

I smile and say, "Thanks!"

I grab the box and start to cut it open.

I lift the box flaps and what's inside causes me to scream and drop it. There are two large dead spiders, shit, blood, a note, and a picture of Ashton and me, with red Xs on our faces.

"Adalynn?" My mom asks, with a gun pointed in my direction. She spots what's inside the box, and her eyes go wide. "Anthony!" She shouts.

My dad comes rushing in with a gun and looks at us. He sees the box and goes to check what's inside.

I walk toward my mom and say, "There's a note in the box."

My mom wraps her arms around me and says, "I'm not touching that box."

My dad grabs a lighter and opens the door. He picks up the box and goes outside.

He's about to burn the box when my mom says, "Wait, Adalynn said there's a note in there."

He casually takes the paper out without being scared of the spiders. My dad throws the rest of the contents into the garbage, and he comes back inside.

The note reads:

"Were you warned again prior to this?" My dad asks.

"Ashton and I were. But we're still working on who is behind all of it." I say, thinking. Not many people in our gang know where we live. That narrows it down...

I look at the time and murmur, "Shit!" I'm going to be late if I don't start moving. I sprint up the stairs to get ready.

I try to say bye to my parents, but can't find them anywhere. I just shrug and open the door to the garage.

I gasp and see my parents smiling at me. Then, I look at what's beside them. "Is that a Harley-Davidson Iron 1200...?"

My mom starts clapping and shouts, "Happy late birthday!"

I hug my parents and say, "Thank you so much!"

"We were supposed to give it to you yesterday, but someone forgot to pick it up." She says, glaring at my dad.

"I thought the tortilla blanket you gave her was the present." He says.

My mom rolls her eyes and says, "Who do you think was getting the motorcycle?"

"...Me." He mumbles.

My mom sighs and says, "You don't need another one."

She turns to me and says, "You better leave now, or you'll actually be late. We'll look into how that box was sent here, so keep your focus on the mole situation."

They both give me one last hug before I exit the garage. I ride through the streets, trying to get to school as fast as possible. The day might have started with another stupid threat, but I'm not letting that determine my attitude.

I walk into the cafeteria and sit with Ella and Mila. "So, did anything interesting happen recently?" Ella asks, hiding a smirk.

I stare at my best friends and ask, "What are you talking about?"

Before I could answer, I spotted Ashton, Zane, and Tristian walking into the cafeteria. As they near our table, I start to panic. My eyes connect with Ashton, and I unconsciously touch my lip.

I quickly look away, but not before I catch him looking down with a smile. So I'm just gonna-

"Hey, I need to go... return my book! It's overdue!" I say to Ella and Mila.

"Okay..." Mila says, giving me a weird look.

Ella says, "Wait, do I have a book to return...?"

I speed walk away from the table, and avoid the guys. I don't know! Whaaa?

"Hey Lynn, wait!" I hear Ashton say.

That's on another floor and also locked. So now you condone hiding?

I hide behind a wall and hope he doesn't turn in this direction. I hear him walking down the hall and hold my breath.

"Lynn, I know you're there." He says, turning to my hiding spot.

"Hey!..." I say awkwardly.

He glances at my neck and goofily smiles. "You're wearing the necklace I gave you..." He says quietly.

I look away and mumble, "Uh ya! It went with my outfit..!"

"So, where's the book you were supposed to return?" He asks, smirking.

"What?" I ask, confused.

He cages me against the wall and says, "Didn't you have an overdue book?"

"Oh, right!" I say.

He raises an eyebrow, waiting for my response. I sigh and say, "Fine. You caught me."

Before I could come up with something to say, Ashton dipped down to brush his lips against mine. I place my arms around his neck and pull him closer.

We separate a few moments later, and my lips feel tingly.I blush and look away.

"I wanted to ask you something..." Ashton says nervously.

"I am not a horrible kisser!" Well fuck.

Ashton laughs and cheekily says, "Best I've ever had."

"That's because you have low standards," I mumbled without thinking.

He chuckles and says, "No, you met my requirements, and I met yours."

"How do you know you met mine?" I ask, raising an eyebrow.

"Give yourself some credit, Lynn. You don't let just anyone into your life and open up." He says.

"Well, that's because you understand my perspective," I explain.

"Which means?" He asks with a soft smile.

"That we'd probably be a good match," I admit.

"A great match even." He adds.

I feel my face heat up and look away. "So you'd be interested in going out sometime? Not as friends." I ask.

"Hmmm... I'll have to think about it." He teases.

I groan in embarrassment, and he wraps his arms around me. "I would love to go on a date with you, Adalynn. It only took us a few months." He says, radiating happiness.

I snort and say, "My bad. I kind of saw the hints, but you could have just been a really friendly guy."

"Hell no. Only you get this special treatment." He says reassuringly.

"Good," I say, pecking his cheek.

"Wanna go to that place where you were going to murder me?" I ask, stopping him from leaving the building.

He looks at me confused and then playfully rolls his eyes. "I wasn't going to murder you." He says, wrapping an arm around my waist.

"You and I both know I'd kill you first," I say, grinning. He shakes his head and continues walking beside me.

Ashton walks me to my parking spot and spots my new ride. "We have the same motorcycle?" He asks.

I excitedly nod and say, "My parents gave it to me for my birthday!"

"That's amazing! I know how badly you wanted it. You harassed a random classmate to try one out." He jokes.

"Well, that random classmate is dating me, so I think it was bound to happen," I say cheekily.

He pecks my lips and says, "I'll meet you there."

We arrive at the forest, and Ashton grabs ahold of my hand. "Follow me and try not to get murdered." He says.

I playfully glare at him and say, "You better watch yourself. If a murderer came, that person would get to you first!"

He laughs and says, "Sure..."

We get to a clearing and sit on the bench. "This is beautiful," I say, admiring my surroundings.

"Not as much as you," Ashton says, placing a strand of my hair behind my ear.

I blush and hide my face against Ashton's chest. I feel Ashton chuckle, and he says, "Your blush is adorable."

"Shut up..." I murmur.

"What's this serious meeting about? I'm assuming we have something to discuss with how you wanted us away from everyone." He says.

"Or I just wanted to murder you in peace," I say with a shrug.

He doesn't find this funny and continues to stare at me. "Don't overreact." I start.

"I will react appropriately. But when it comes to you, I will be extra protective." He states.

"I received another threat. They sent me dead spiders, hopefully fake blood, a picture of us, and a pile of shit." I say. "But there was also a note. It said, "You didn't heed our warning bitch."

"I mean, calling me a bitch is a bit much, don't you think?" I ask, trying to make a joke.

He gives me an unamused face and squeezes my hand. Then, he takes out a piece of paper and lets me read it.

"They didn't call you a bitch!" I say, frowning.

"I received it this morning. I have cameras, but I lost the person's trail when they went into an area without security footage. " Ashton explains.

I feel tears start to form and try blinking them away. I am not going to cry in front of him. I'm just really tired of this shit.

"Hey," Ashton says softly. He cups my cheek, and I lean into his hand. "We're going to get through this."

"I've just never experienced anything like this... I'm the leader of my gang, but I can't even figure out who's in Evanescent. What the hell is wrong with me?" I say, annoyed.

"Nothing. We'll figure it out. I've got your back. This is stressful for any person to deal with. Especially since we're still teenagers, cut us some slack, babe." Ashton says seriously.

He surprisingly causes me to laugh, and I feel a tiny bit better. "I have a clue on who's a mole in my gang. It's someone who knows where I live. Not many people know where I live, not even the school." I say.

"Do you know who?" He asks.

I shake my head and say, "Only two families know. Besides you, of course. I hope I'm wrong, though. There's still a possibility of a stalker."

"Who are they?" Ashton asks.

"Mila and Ella," I say, looking down.

"Are you sure?" He asks.

"Their families are the only people who have ever gone to my house and know about the Red Claw. But again, maybe someone else is snooping into my life, and I just haven't noticed. Maybe I've been too distracted to notice a stalker." I say.

"Well, if that's where your head is at, the only people who've been to my house are Zane and Tristian..." He says, shrugging.

"Do you think they're working against you?" I ask.

"I don't know... I don't think they're those kinds of people, but I'm starting to feel paranoid about everything." He says.

I sigh, and Ashton pulls me closer. "We're in this together."

I make eye contact with him and ask, "Promise?"

He grins and says, "Pinky promise."

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