I look everywhere, outside and in, for Tristan, but he's nowhere to be found. I wonder if I should be concerned? He might just be out cruising the streets, or at a party. Either way, he probably has a perfectly good reason for disappearing. But what if it's because of you and Chad? A small voice at the back of my head says. Shut up, small voice. There's no way he could possibly have been hurt by our kiss. Why should he care, anyway? He has a girlfriend. It's not like he actually likes me. Sure, we almost kissed twice, but that was a long time ago, and now he's got a new girlfriend who looks like a fashion model. So why should he care? He shouldn't, and he wouldn't. At least, that's what I'm telling myself.
Tristan's p.o.v.
Ugh! Fuck her! Fuck him! FUCK FUCKING HORMONES! After Alex and that dude kissed, I had no idea what to do. I didn't want Alex to know I was watching, and I sure as hell didn't want to stick around. Their kiss twisted something inside of me. Anger. Rage. And something else. I can't quite put my finger on it. But I know that I felt really bad, and running away was all I could do to keep my emotions under control. I wanted to punch the living shit out of that dude, whoever the hell he was. But I knew that that wasn't going to help my situation, plus Alex would be mad.

Now I'm headed towards Lisa's house. I don't know what I'll say to her, but I have to say something. I can't just keep these feelings bottled up inside. I stole Alex's motorcycle from the garage, and with my hood up you almost can't tell the difference between her and me.

I pulled up in front of Lisa's house, cutting the engine. Racing up to the front door, not even bothering to take my helmet off, I ring the doorbell anxiously. In a few seconds Lisa appears at the door. "Hey, Alex," she says, after taking a look at the motorcycle. "Tristan," I correct her, removing the helmet. She looks at me, dumbfounded. "What are you doing here?" "I don't know," I admit. "I have no idea why I came here. I just.." I trail off, not sure how to explain what I'm feeling. "Come in," she says. "We'll talk."

I follow her inside, taking in my surroundings. Lisa's house is exactly suited to her personality. Black, silky curtains cover several large windows, potted palms stand at either end of the entrance to her hallway. Her bookcase is overflowing with Nancy Drew mysteries. The wallpaper she's used to decorate her house is truly one of a kind. It's black, but little white dots, like stars, pepper it. Her sofas and other furniture are decorated with blankets of the same design as the wallpaper. There's only one lamp in the whole room, and it stands beside the dark wooded side table beside the sofa. A flat-screen TV is anchored in a comfortable position so that Lisa can watch it comfortably from the sofa.

She notices me looking around, and says, "Pretty dismal, huh?" "Not really," I say. "In fact, it looks like my kind of house." Lisa smiles. "Yeah. I'm really into the universe, as you can tell." I nod at the wallpaper and blankets. "Are you going to study astronomy?" She makes her shoulders go up and down. "First I have to earn enough to go to school." I look at her, confused. "Aren't your parents going to send you to college if you want to go?" She lets out a sharp, harsh laugh that doesn't sound happy at all. "Honey, my old man's too busy drowning in his booze bottles to give a damn, and my Mamma, bless her soul, can't do anything about it from the grave."

"Oh," I say, flustered. "I-I'm sorry." She chuckles. "No need to be." "So, how about I go make us some hot chocolate while you prepare to spill your feelings?" Lisa says, trying to smooth over the awkward moment. I nod, moving to let her pass by. "Make yourself at home," she orders. "I'll be right back ."

Obediently, I sit down on one of the blanket-draped chairs. In truth, she intimidates me. I've never seen a woman with her level of confidence before, nor have I ever seen a woman who acts so strong. I have no idea just how strong she actually is, but she sure acts strong.

Just then Lisa enters the room again, carrying two steaming mugs of hot cocoa. "This is kind of weird, you know?" I say. "I mean, we're in Alabama, where it's hot every day, and you serve me hot chocolate?" She laughs, much to my pleasure. I smile at her as I take the first sip.

"So, what's up?" Lisa asks, not missing a beat. "I'm not sure. It's just that, Alex kissed this other guy, and I'm not sure what's happening, but I don't like it." "Wait!" She sets her cup down, meeting my eyes. She looks incredulous. "You mean, our Alex kissed another guy?" "Yeah," I answer, twisting the cup around in my hands. She looks surprised, to say the very least. "What is it?" I ask, confused by her behavior. Not answering my question, she asks, "Who was the guy?" "I don't know," I say. "I've never seen him before." "What did he look like?" Lisa asks, frowning. As I describe his appearance, her eyes widen in shock.

"What? What is it?" I ask, puzzled by her reaction. "Chad," Lisa whispers, eyes full of revelation. "Who's Chad?" I ask. She looks at me for a minute, like she forgot I was in the room. She takes a deep breath, obviously contemplating her answer. "Um..." I sigh, waiting for her to speak.

Finally she meets my eyes with a piercing gaze of her own. "Chad was Alex's summer love." "What?" I shout, jumping up from my chair. Lisa stands, too. "Alex met him over summer, the summer before she moved here. They fell in love, but broke up at the end of summer." "Why?" I ask, afraid to know the answer. Lisa hesitates, as if trying to decide how much to tell me. Finally she says, "Well, Alex didn't know about the move when they broke up. It happened for a different reason, but I can't tell you what that reason was."

Accepting her words, I say, "So now that Alex is back here, she's going to get back together with her old boyfriend." My face probably registers exactly what is going on in my heart: Anger, hurt, betrayal, bitterness. Lisa sighs. "I'm honestly not sure what's going on in that little mind of hers, Tristan." I nod, accepting the fact that she doesn't know why Alex kissed him. "Well, thanks," I tell her, preparing for my departure. "Anytime," Lisa says, waving me a goodbye.

I contemplate going back to the beach house, but I'm not ready to face Alex yet. I honestly don't know what's happening to me. The meeting with Lisa left me with more questions than answers, so I still don't know what to do about my own feelings.

Suddenly I have an inspiration. I quickly fire up Alex's motorcycle and speed off in the direction of something I know will take my mind off of Alex and her stupid kiss with her stupid ex-boyfriend.