The next day, Savana woke up and expected to see a bunch of texts from Landon. But there wasn't. None at all. She felt a sudden wave of disappointment and hurt. It was all still very confusing for her.

She wondered if he had gone straight home last night and passed out. Or if he drove back to his friends and drank even more. Savana was still worried about him. But she was still upset at how he acted last night. She couldn't believe how out of control he had gotten with her. The thought of confronting him again sent her stomach spinning.

After Cully and Faye woke up, they asked how Savana was feeling. She lied and said she was okay. They knew she was lying and decided to take Savana on a memorable birthday trip. They wanted to help her get Landon off her mind.

It was a two-hour drive, but it was worth it. The girls traveled to an indoor water park. It was the most fun any of them had in a long time.

The whole place was decorated like a jungle. Jungle landscapes were painted on the walls. Statues of leopards, monkeys, and alligators surrounded the pools. Tropical plants and trees were scattered throughout the park. They swam in the deepest pool and dove to the bottom. They laughed and screamed as they slid down the water slides. And finally, they relaxed in the lazy river, giggling as they checked out all the cute guys parading around.

Hours later, they decided they had enough of chlorine and their fingers pruning. They gathered up their things and changed in the locker room. On their way back to Unity, they stopped at Savana's favorite fast-food place.

While eating, Savana heard her phone go off. She quickly picked it up and was disappointed. It wasn't Landon apologizing. Her dad asked her what she wanted for dinner later that night. She replied with "pizza" and set her phone down.

"Was that Landon?" Faye asked.

"No." Savana said as she bit into her burger.

After eating, Cully continued driving. She looked in her review mirror at Savana sitting in the back seat.

"So, when are you breaking up with him?"

"Cully, it's her birthday. Maybe it can wait." Faye suggested.

"What a perfect birthday present to break up with your douchebag boyfriend." Cully smiled.

"She's right, Faye. I should just do it and get it over with. It's not like I'm taking him to prom anyway." Savana looked out the window, watching the other cars go by.

"We can come with you if you want." Faye offered.

"I'd like that." Savana truly didn't feel comfortable being alone with Landon again.

"Is he working today?" Cully asked.

"No, I don't think so." Savana wasn't entirely sure, but he should be at the Hardware Store since he lives above it.

"Text him saying you want to meet up at the park. We'll come with." Cully felt ready to fight if he made a scene.

"Okay." Savana texted Landon. Surprisingly he responded right away.

"He says he'll be there soon. And I didn't tell him you guys would be there too."

"Good." Cully never trusted Landon.

Forty minutes later, Cully pulled into the Lake Maiden parking lot. They saw Landon sitting on a swing. Savana remembered this was how she found him the night they first kissed. Her stomach twisted again.

"Do you want us to stay in the car or come out with you?" Faye asked.

Savana took off her seatbelt and opened the door. "Stay in here for now. You'll know if I need you to come." She imagined how Landon could get aggressive with her again.

The girls nodded their heads and watched Savana walk to the swings.

"God, I hope he doesn't do anything to her." Cully was anxious.

They watched as Savana talked to Landon. She looked so timid. She was usually the one to intimidate others. It was rare for them to see their friend like that.

Suddenly they saw Landon grab Savana's arm and start yelling at her. The girls quickly jumped out of the car and ran towards them. "Bastard!" Cully hissed.

"You can't just say we're done and walk away from me!" Landon yelled.

"Let go of me!" Savana yelled back. She frantically looked back at Cully's car and saw her friends sprinting towards her.

"Get your fucking hands off her!" Cully screamed as she got in his face and shoved him as hard as she could.

Faye took Savana's arm and pulled her away from him. Faye looked over at Landon with tears in her eyes. "How could you treat her like this? What's wrong with you?"

Landon scoffed. "You think you're such great friends with her even though she kept our relationship a secret? Whatever." He stormed off.

Faye kept Savana from moving toward him. "Don't bother texting me anymore!" She shouted out to him.

Landon stopped in place briefly and then walked back to his loft above Jesimae's store.

"What are you going to do when you have to work with him again?" Cully asked.

Savana trembled with tears in her eyes. "I don't know. I haven't thought about it."

"You have to tell your aunt." Faye said as she rubbed her back.

"No, I can't. She'll fire him and kick him out." Savana shook her head.

"Who cares? He deserves it!" Cully raised her voice.

Savana flinched and turned away.

"I'm sorry, I'm just so mad. He doesn't deserve your kindness." Cully lowered her voice. She saw how shaken Savana was.

Cully was still frustrated with Chase after leaving his house the last time. She realized Savana was right about some of his friends. They were jerks. Being with him wasn't the same anymore. She didn't know what to do.

"I know, I know. But I just can't. He has nowhere else to go." Savana cried. How would she explain things?

"It'll be okay. We'll figure something out." Faye hugged her.

The girls took Savana home. They stayed in the car in front of the house and discussed handling things with Landon. Faye offered to ask her mom to hire Savana since she already helped a lot. Nicole had offered to pay her before anyway.

Savana agreed. She would tell Jesimae that she wanted to help Faye and Nicole because it's the start of their busy season, and they're short-handed. Jesimae didn't need her as much.

Gavin noticed the girls sitting in Cully's car for a long time. He wondered why they hadn't come inside to talk. Eventually, Savana got out and walked into the house. The other two left.

"You could have invited the girls inside for dinner." Gavin observed his daughter.

"It's okay, we had a lot of fun today." Savana smiled at her dad. She tried to hide any indication of her being upset. Gavin still sensed something was wrong but didn't want to push it. He didn't want a fight to break out on her birthday.

A little later, Jesimae and Ezra came over for her birthday dinner. Despite not being officially hired at the daycare, Savana told Jesimae she was quitting the hardware store. It caught her off guard, but Jesimae was okay with it, and happy Savana wanted to help Nicole.

Ezra also sensed something was wrong. He looked at Savana quizzically. She noticed him looking at her strangely but ignored him. She wasn't ready to tell Ezra about Landon yet.

They all finished eating and played card games. Ezra tried to sing 'happy birthday' before Savana punched his arm to make him stop. Laughter filled the house late into the night.

The next day was Easter Sunday, and Grandma Greta and Grandpa Jasper were coming over. Grandma always brought a basket of Easter goodies, and Grandpa always had a funny story. She couldn't wait to see them.