The world was changing from winter to spring. The air was getting warmer with each passing day and still, Caleb forced himself to stay as chilly as the winter. It was all a blur to him as he continued on autopilot towards a destination that he couldn't see.

"Caleb," Adrian said and Caleb turned to look at him. They were sitting in the cafeteria eating pizza that was more grease than anything else.

"Yeah?" Caleb asked because he knew by now that Adrian would keep bugging him until he spoke.

"You're coming over today after practice," Adrian said with definitiveness in his voice that Caleb wasn't used to.

"No," Caleb said, not even wasting time on an excuse. They both knew he didn't have anything else going on. The few other friends he had hadn't been his friends for months. He couldn't even remember the last time he had talked to most of them.

"Dude, I didn't ask." Adrian took a bite of his pizza and wiped at the waterfall of grease with a napkin. "You're coming."

"It's Friday. We both know you have better options." Caleb pointed out.

"Even if you act all broody like this I still want to hang out with my best friend for a night." Adrian gave him a more serious look. "I know we've never talked about what happened, but whatever it is it can't go on forever."

Caleb stayed silent as Adrian glared at his pizza before setting it down in a puddle of orange grease. "You're going to come over. We're going to eat some real pizza that's made from more than a pool of fat and then we're going to watch some movie where everything blows up and one guy saves the world at the very last second."

"Before you say no again remember that I didn't give you that option. You can only say yes." Adrian smirked.

"One movie," Caleb said knowing when to take the loss and honestly he was worried what he might do if he had to spend another night by himself. His parents were away on another selling trip and Ruth was busy with midterms.

"Deal." Adrian picked up his pizza, shook it over the plate, and took another bite. "Why does this stuff taste so good?"

"Crack." Caleb joked. "I've heard that they put crack in the grease."

"I wouldn't be surprised." Adrian chuckled as the bell rang. "Guess I better get to class. I'll see you at 7."

"Okay." Caleb nodded his head even though he didn't want to go. He picked up his uneaten pizza and threw it into the trashcan as he walked to his next class dreading what was to come that night.

A couple of hours later he knocked on the Masons' door and waited for Adrian to let him in. They always told him to just walk in, but he didn't feel right doing it anymore.

"Caleb, I half expected that you'd just not show up," Adrian said with a big smile as he let Caleb inside.

"I didn't think that was an option," Caleb smirked.

"We both know you can be very stubborn." Adrian shrugged and led the way to the den in the basement. They passed the kitchen where Adrian's parents were dancing with two of his younger sisters and baby brother. Most kids thought it was strange to see their teachers outside of class, but Caleb hadn't realized how much he had missed Mr. Mason and his wife.

"Caleb, it's been too long." Mr. Mason said as he tossed one of the kids into the air. "We're glad to have you."

"Thanks." Caleb nodded, unsure of what to do.

"Caleb!" Jenny and Juniper ran at Caleb. He caught one of them in each arm.

"Hey." He ruffled their hair. "You're so big. What are you? 16? 21?" He joked and they giggled.

"No silly." Jenny shook her head.

"We're six," Juniper said as they both held up five fingers.

"Leave it those two to get to hug you first." Rachel, Adrian's thirteen-year-old sister, came and hugged Caleb. "Michael says hello too but he's on the final level of some game or whatever."

"Got it." Caleb forced himself to not bolt. "How's ballet?"

"I'm in karate now. Michael's actually doing ballet. We kind of switched spots."

"Stop telling people that!" Michael, the fifteen-year-old yelled from the study.

"Rachel." Mrs. Mason scolded her daughter while hiding a laugh. "Caleb, sweetie, how have you been?"

"Great." Caleb reminded himself to breathe. It had always been strange going to the Mason's. They were a big, loving family and Caleb had no idea how to act with them. They were one of those families that were loud, in your business, and welcoming.

Every single game, play, and dance, they were there cheering on Adrian, or whichever kid was performing. They were the definition of a family unit. A lot of people knew about Adrian's family, but they didn't understand that he was just as loving and open as them. And he let them think what they wanted.

"We're going to be in the den. Can you let me know when the pizza gets here?" Adrian asked his dad. "Before it's all eaten?"

"Only because Caleb's here." Mr. Mason teased.

Adrian led the way downstairs and Caleb followed, grateful to get away from the happy chaos that was the Mason family. The room had been reorganized. The old, plaid couch set had been replaced with a new black one. There were toys scattered around the room and pictures covered the walls and the tables.

"Mom finally convinced dad to get rid of that terrible couch he got from Grandma and Grandpa," Adrian said as he picked up the remote.

"I'm just surprised it took this long." Caleb took a seat on the new couch and was happy to not get pricked by a spring or two.

"You know him. He doesn't teach history, he lives it." Adrian sat down on the other love seat as he turned on the TV. "Do you care what we watch?"

"No."

"That's what I like to hear." Adrian laughed. "Because I already have a movie picked out." He pressed play and Caleb knew what it was as soon as the opening music started to play.

The movie was halfway over by the time Mr. Mason told them the pizza was there. They paused the movie and ran upstairs. Caleb was relieved to see that the kitchen was empty. The rest of the family was off doing their own things and the pizza was cold.

"Dad, it's cold!" Adrian yelled up the stairs.

"Be happy we left you some!" He yelled back. "I'm not your personal butler."

"Just heat it up." Mrs. Mason called down. "It'll be fine."

"Parents." Adrian rolled his eyes at Caleb. "Can't live with them and wouldn't be alive without them."

The doorbell rang and Michael, who was still in the study, which was closest to the door yelled for someone to answer it.

Adrian motioned to the pizza. "Go ahead and get as much as you want. I'll be right back." Adrian disappeared to the front door as Caleb put a couple of pieces on a plate

He carried the plate to the microwave and started it as he opened the fridge looking for a drink. He got himself a can of root beer just as the microwave dinged.

"It's fine. We're just getting something to eat." Adrian was saying as he walked into the kitchen and Caleb looked over to see who he was talking to.

"Sorry for being late." Bethany's voice hit Caleb's ears before he saw her. "We would have been here earlier."

"But I didn't want to come." Dyson finished for her.

"What is he doing here?" Caleb demanded, forgetting about the pizza in the microwave.

"It's good to see you too." Dyson scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Beth, you can't keep doing this to us."

"Doing what?" She asked with an innocent smile.

"I'm done." Caleb threw his arms up and left.