I walked into school the next day feeling exhausted. I had barely slept. My mind had been overrun with thoughts of Gideon and Jude.

                I looked around for Sonnet but didn’t spot her anywhere. She must be running late this morning. Or she most likely overslept.

                Something hit my arm and I jumped away in surprise. I looked over and let out an annoyed sigh.

                “Ethan, what the hell? You scared me!” I said.

                Ethan smiled cheerfully and waved. “Good morning Benji!”

                “What do you want?” I asked, too tired to deal with this.

                “I’m going to stick around you. I told you not to be alone with Nate and Landon on the hunt,” he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

                “Ethan, I don’t need anyone to protect me!” I said impatiently.

                “True, but I need someone to protect me. So I figure that if I stick around you, I get 2 for 1. Not only will I be safe from Nate and Landon, but I also get eye candy,” he said, grinning and eyeing me again.

                I looked into Ethan’s eyes and mentally sighed. Behind the cocky front, I could see true fear buried deep in there. He really was afraid Nate and Landon would come after him, and he had only angered them to get them away from me.

                “Fine. Come on; I need to go find my best friend,” I said, motioning at him to follow me.

                “Okay!” He eagerly followed after me.

                Ethan was about the same height as me, just a little bit shorter. It was strange, since most people, especially boys, were way taller than me.

                Spotting Gideon at his locker, I led Ethan over there. I glanced around, but relaxed when I didn’t see Jude anywhere.

                “Gideon,” I said, going up and placing my hand on his shoulder.

                He looked back at me and smiled. “Hey Greyson! I’ve got so much to tell you about last night,” he said, his voice excited and his eyes lighting up.

                “Greyson? I thought your name was Benji. Benji’s such a cute name too,” Ethan said with a sigh.

                “My name is Benji. Benjamin Greyson Bryant. Gideon is the only person who calls me Greyson,” I explained.

                “Who’s this?” Gideon asked curiously.

                “This is Ethan,” I said. “Don’t ask me anything more than his first name because, quite frankly, I don’t know nor care.”

                “Oh harsh,” Ethan said, chuckling. “And I thought we were becoming such good friends Benji!”

                “Uh…did you two just meet?” Gideon asked.

                I nodded. “Yep. Down at the parking lot yesterday.”

                Ethan shot me a thankful look for leaving out the fact that he’d been getting the hell beaten out of him when we met. I gave him a slight nod.

                “Gideon, good morning.”

                We all turned to face Jude. He kissed Gideon’s cheek and held out an ice coffee to him, cracking a small smirk.

                “I figured you’d be tired because of how late we got back. I felt bad, so I picked this up for you on my way to school. It’s your favorite,” he said.

                “French vanilla ice coffee with extra cream and regular sugar,” I grumbled.

                Gideon laughed and took the coffee. “Thanks Jude! And yea, me and Greyson have the same coffee order,” he said.

                “Wish I had known sooner. I could’ve gotten one for Benji too,” Jude said, turning to me. His eyes came to rest on Ethan, and that smug look entered them.

                “Jude,” Ethan said with a sigh. “I understand that yesterday had something to do with you. Thank you ever so much. I enjoy all the color to my pale complexion.” He placed his hand over the bruises on his side, hidden by his T-shirt.

                “I’m always happy to help, Ethan,” Jude said, his smirk growing and his dark eye lighting up.

                “Face of an angel, attitude of a devil. How cliché,” Ethan said, shaking his head.

                Jude ignored him, his attention back on me. “Benji, would you like me to get you a coffee too next time? You seem the kind of guy who likes a little…extra in his drink,” he said, his eyes, so dark you could barely see his pupils, dared me to call him out on his taunt.

                “Yep. I like a turbo shot. A little pick up in the morning,” I said, trying to keep my temper. Yelling at Jude right now would only upset Gideon.

                Speaking of Gideon, he was staring between all of us looking extremely confused. “Uh…am I missing something here?” he asked.

                “Nothing at all Gideon,” Jude said, reaching out and holding Gideon’s hand. “Now, come with me to my locker. Goodbye Benji and Ethan. Oh, and Ethan, I saw you sitting alone yesterday. Maybe we’ll come join you for lunch today.”

                “Oh lord. My head shoved in a toilet was not how I was picturing my lunch period,” Ethan groaned.

                “What?” Gideon asked in surprise.

                “Oh please, Ethan. I was trying to be nice. I would never do something like that,” Jude said, faking a hurt expression.

                “Oh! I get it. You want to date that guy!” Ethan said in understanding. “Right. Well, what was your name? Gideon? Yea, that was it. Well Gideon, Jude here is an outstanding citizen. He kicks puppies for fun and shoves friendless boys’ heads in the toilet during his lunch period. He also occasionally sends his friends to beat up some losers in the parking lot after school and will, on a really good day, shove you in a locker and leave you hyperventilating until the janitor finds you and gets you out.”

                “Jude, what is he talking about?” Gideon demanded.

                “I don’t know,” Jude said, looking so confused that I almost believed him. But I could see the smugness glinting in his eyes. “I’ve always been nice to you, Ethan. What the hell are you talking about?”

                “Jude, you should be an actor,” Ethan said. “Look at you…handsome, talented…you would be the perfect actor!”

                “Jude, be honest with me. Did you ever pick on him?” Gideon asked, his expression serious and demanding.

                “I’ve never been mean to him a day in my life Gideon!” Jude cried. “You know me! You know I’m not like that!”

                “Huh, I always thought I’d feel bad about screwing someone over. But damn, this feels greats!” Ethan said, grinning. “Payback is a bitch, isn’t it Jude?”

                I watched Jude carefully. He was cunning, but how the hell was he going to get himself out of this mess? Ethan was clearly the type of person who was either really stupid or really brave. He wasn’t going to bite his tongue against Jude.

                “Payback for what? I’ve never done anything to you before Ethan!” Jude said. He let out a frustrated sigh and raked a hand through his dark hair. “Whatever. Let’s go Gideon. I don’t know what’s gotten into Ethan.”

                “Yea. Let’s go. I think we need to talk, Jude,” Gideon said, pulling Jude away with a neutral expression on his face.

                “You’re a complete moron, but I could just kiss you,” I said, turning to Ethan once Gideon and Jude were out of sight.

                Ethan grinned. “Pucker up.”

                I rolled my eyes. “Not literally. Anyways, he’s going to have his friends after you. So come on; I’ll walk you to class.”

                Ethan and I began to walk down the hallway as he told me what homeroom he was in. I was more awake now, trying to stay alert for any sign of Jude’s friends.

                “Benji!”

                “Shit!” I jumped away in terror.

                Ethan raised an eyebrow. “My hero, valiantly protecting me from a harmless girl. Good thing I have you to protect me, Benji,” he said.

                “Who’s the short, sarcastic kid?” Sonnet asked.

                “This is Ethan,” I said and explained everything.

                “Whoa! Another victim of Jude? And he had the balls to tell Gideon the truth?” Sonnet asked.

                “I was trying to protect Gideon!” I said in annoyance.

                “How is lying protecting him? Just tell him Jude’s an asshole,” Ethan said with a shrug. “Although I’ve seen Jude pretend to be nice before, and I can tell you that he was showing true kindness to your friend back there. It wasn’t his usual pretend shit.”

                “Jude with a good side?” I asked in disbelief.

                “Or a horny side. He might just be desperate to get laid. Gideon is really sexy,” he said.

                “Ethan, shut up!” I said.

                “Oh-ho-ho. Someone has a crush on his best friend,” Ethan said, his grin returning.

                “Trust me, it’s not a secret. Benji’s been getting friend zoned for years,” Sonnet said, slinging an arm around my shoulders.

                I pushed her off of me. “But not any longer! I’m going to get Gideon to take my feelings seriously!” I said in determination.

                “Well that plan sounds like it’s going to crash and burn. Anyways, my classroom is right there, so I’ll catch you later Benji and…uh…”

                “Sonnet,” Sonnet said. “My name is Sonnet.”

                “Oh, I like that, it’s a nice name. Alright, see you later Benji and Sonnet,” he said, giving a short wave before walking down the hallway and a little and disappearing into the classroom.

                “So…What’s between you and Ethan?” Sonnet asked.

                “Nothing! I just feel bad, so I was walking with him to make sure he wasn’t alone,” is aid.

                “Benji, my dear, you’re not going to be much help if Nate and Landon jump you two. They’ll just get two birds with one stone,” she pointed out.

                “Shut up Sonnet,” I said with a pout.

                We went off to class. When lunch time came around, we sat at our usual table. Gideon had an unreadable expression on his face.

                “What happened between you and Jude?” I asked, my tone gentle.

                “He keeps saying he never did anything to Ethan. But all the rumors about him I’ve heard…Benji, do you think he’s a bad person?” Gideon asked, looking at me with devastated eyes. “I never believed the rumors. He’s been nothing but nice whenever I’m around him. What do you think?”

                I opened my mouth to tell him the truth. To let him know what Jude did to me. Let him decide on his own what type of person Jude was once he had the other side.

                “Gideon?”

                We looked up at Jude. He took a seat next to Gideon and gripped Gideon’s hand, looking into his eyes.

                “I really don’t know why Ethan said all of that stuff about me Gideon. I’ve never given Ethan a problem before. I swear on my life. I don’t want one lying guy to ruin everything between us. I like you so much Gideon. You know I’m not a bad person. Don’t let what he said ruin us,” Jude said, practically begging. I knew he was lying about Ethan, but I could also see he really didn’t want things between him and Gideon to be ruined.

                “Benji, you’re friends with Ethan, right?” Gideon asked, looking at me.

                “Friends…Isn’t the term I would use,” I grumbled.

                “Well, I was going to do a sleepover tomorrow night. Let’s invite Ethan. Maybe we can work this whole thing out,” Gideon said, squeezing Jude’s hand reassuringly.

                Jude nodded eagerly, which made my stomach clench. He had wanted Gideon to invite Ethan over. He had something planned.

                I met Sonnet’s eyes, and could instantly tell that she was thinking the same thing. But what could Jude possibly have planned?

                “Where is Ethan?” Jude asked curiously. And then my heart just about stopped as he looked at me, his eyes lit up with smugness.

                “I’ll go find him,” I said quickly, jumping up and hurrying out of the cafeteria.

                I hurried to the boys’ bathroom, and rattled the handle, cursing under my breath. It was locked. Ethan was in there. He had to be.

                I turned, scanning for a janitor to unlock it. But then the door creaked and all of a sudden, someone was gripping the back of my shirt and pulling me into the bathroom. The door slammed and I heard the sound of it being locked again.

                I looked up at Nate in fear. Landon was a few feet away, holding a bloody-nosed Ethan tightly. Nate and Landon were both smirking.

                “Looking for this?” Landon asked, shoving Ethan to the floor.

                “Hello floor. We meet again,” Ethan said, patting the floor good naturedly.

                He groaned as Landon put his foot on Ethan’s neck. Landon pressed down, knocking Ethan’s head into the floor.

                “Let him go!” I cried in alarm. They were really going to hurt Ethan.

                Landon knelt down, gripping Ethan’s hair and forcing his head back up. “This is us letting you off easy. Next time you try to expose Jude like that, it will be a hell of a lot worse on you,” he said and spit in Ethan’s face.

                “Aw gross!” Ethan whined, wiping at his face.

                Landon threw him against the wall painfully. Nate released me and the two casually strolled out of the bathroom. I hurried over to Ethan and helped him stand up.

                “Are you okay?” I asked.

                “With your arms around me I am,” he said, winking.

                “Your nose is bleeding really badly,” I said, grabbing a paper towel and holding it under his nose.

                “I’m more concerned about the herpes infested spit on my face,” he said, grabbing another paper towel, wetting it, and wiping his face with it.

                “What happened to not being alone? Why didn’t you sit with your friends?” I asked.

                He gestured at himself. “I have no friends, I am 5’3”, and I have the muscular ability of a lamp. I’m kind of an easy target, Benji.”

                “No friends at all?” I asked.

                “Do you need me to say it in Spanish? No tengo amigos!” he said in irritation. “I can start singing Akon’s Mr. Lonely if that helps you get it through your head.”

                “I just…you seem outgoing,” I said.

                “No, I’m a sassy little bastard. There’s a difference,” he said.

                I sighed and quickly explained everything to him, including the fact that we were pretty sure Jude had a plan. Ethan listened with a calm expression, cleaning the blood off of his face since his nose had stopped bleeding.

                “Okay,” he said when I was done. “I’m in.”

                “What? Did you miss the part where we’re pretty sure Jude has a plan?” I asked.

                “A night with 3 incredibly hot gay guys, unlimited chances to rant about much of a dick Jude is, a chance to ruin his relationship, and 3 of us plotting against Jude. What part was I supposed to hate?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

                “It’s not going to be easy!” I said, resisting the urge to strangle this idiot.

                “No, but it’ll be damn fun,” he said, grinning.

                He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the bathroom. I sighed and led him to the table we sat at, where Jude and Gideon were talking. Sonnet looked up as we approached.

                “I’m in,” Ethan said to Gideon.

                “Great,” Gideon said, sounding relieved. “Then we can figure all of this out, and have a fun night.”

                “Oh yea. It’ll be a night full of joy,” I grumbled, sitting down. I looked at Jude suspiciously before turning to Gideon. “You don’t have Everclear in your basement, do you?”

                “No, why?” he asked curiously.

                “Just wondering,” I said with a shrug. Note to self: Do not accept anything from Jude ever again. Ever.

                Jude was smirking at me. He wrapped an arm around Gideon’s waist and rested his head on Gideon’s shoulder.

                “I hope we can fix all of this Gideon,” he said sincerely.

                “We can,” Gideon said confidently, reaching up and playing with Jude’s hair. It was as black as his eyes. Probably as black as his soul.

                Ethan dropped down in the chair next to me. “Well, it’s going to be an interesting night for sure,” he said.

                “Three overly sarcastic bitches against one evil genius. Think we have a chance?” Sonnet asked, keeping her voice low so that only Ethan and I could hear her.

                “Realistically? No, probably not,” I said.

                Jude looked over, giving us a smug look. That look declared war on us. That look announced that he had something planned, and he was confident that he would come out on top yet again.

                I shot him a glare, letting him know that we were going to fight back. He wasn’t going to outsmart the three of us tomorrow. We would expose him to Gideon and save Ethan. And once Jude was out of the way, Gideon could finally be mine.