The drive home from that night had been silent, and Drew hadn't said a word since we had left. I was extremely confused, but I knew bringing it up, at least right now, was the wrong approach. I was hoping Drew would plan on explaining once we were dropped off at her place, it was just the waiting that was getting to me.

There was an account, an account that Ronnie had for Evan until Alice came along. He must've signed it over to Alice whenever she had been diagnosed and then it was inevitably signed over to Drew whenever her mom knew she wasn't going to live much longer. Except that very account was frozen, unable to be accessed because it was protected under something Drew had no knowledge on. That's what I had pieced together anyway, and most of it made sense in my head.

Evan needed money, that was obvious, but money for what I wasn't sure. There had to have been inheritance from Ronnie's recent death, he had to have gotten something, right? I mean he was the only child, and Drew wasn't biological, so what was the missing piece? And why the hell had he been in New York in the first place?

According to Evan he had been surprised to see Drew, which meant he hadn't known Drew fought. That was until he apparently put up a lot of money for betting, and he had recognized his step-sister's name. Betting against Drew had cost him, I guess he figured she would've lost and he would've gotten double back, but his plan had back-fired.

Now he was in a serious financial situation, but how he had gotten to the same underground league as us was a mystery. 

We pulled up to Drew's and left Dee and Maria, saying our quick goodbyes and escaping the cold. There were a lot of things I wanted Drew to explain, starting with the mystery account that Evan wanted so badly. I was just afraid she wasn't going to explain anything tonight, and I didn't like the idea of waiting.

But when we made it into her apartment Drew didn't even lock the door behind her, leaving me to do it. I watched her stalk towards the stairs, leaving me in the living room momentarily before I followed her.

I walked into her room to room to see her fishing for something on her bookshelf, a folder I hadn't noticed until tonight. It was thick with paperwork, most of it looking to be useless until she spread them all over her bed.

I asked, "What is that?"

She just shook her head, "I have to have something telling me how to access it... I just have to find it."

She flipped desperately through the stack of papers, her eyes scanning frantically as I walked over to her. She wasn't going to give this to Evan, was she? This was money that would help her in the long run, money that could provide her a life outside of the fighting. This was something Ronnie had given her mom, knowing it would be passed to Drew.

No matter what Evan had said tonight Ronnie had given that money indirectly to Drew, and she was actually thinking about giving it back to the person who had hurt her tremendously?

I crawled over to her, mumbling, "Are you planning on giving it to him?"

She was sorting papers left and right, shaking her head, "I don't know... I just, if this will get him to go away... I'll do anything, Bree."

I grabbed her wrist then, leading to her scared eyes falling onto me. She was terrified, I could see it, but she didn't understand what she was about to do. I shook my head, "Drew, you can't give him whatever is in that account."

She didn't seem to understand.

I continued, "I don't care what Evan told you tonight, Ronnie gave that money to you. He knew what he was doing, he knew about your mom's cancer before you did. You can't give Evan what he wants."

Her hand pulled away from me, shaking her head, "You don't understand what it's like... what I feel when he shows up. I don't expect you to, but you can't make my decisions for me Breanna. If this gets him to stay the hell away from me I'll give it to him. I don't care about the money."

I felt my heart wrench once more, shaking my head at her attitude. If she was that scared of Evan then maybe I should be too, but I wasn't, and Drew needed to stand against him. It wasn't about the money. He was manipulating her, and if she gave into him over this he was going to get what he wanted. He was power hungry, and he wanted power over Drew. As long as Drew let him walk all over her he would keep coming back, and even if she did give him money who was to say he wouldn't show up a year later threatening her again?

I couldn't let her do that.

I stood, "He has nothing over you anymore, Drew. Don't you see that? This is him trying to control you, stay in your head... this is just the perfect excuse to do so. I can't let you give into him."

She stood along with me, fear obvious in those light eyes. She was shaking her head, almost as if she wanted to agree but the fear bubbling inside her was going to burst if she did. She was standing close to me, which made me nervous, and it wasn't the cute nervous I was used to. It was something a lot darker than that.

Her fists were balled, "He's going to hurt you, I can feel it. He knows he can't hurt me directly anymore, and he knows how much you mean to me. If I don't give him what he wants he's going to fucking ruin the only thing that's made me happy in years."

Her words seemed to knock the wind out of me, as if the fear and sadness just flew out of her mouth and punched me right in the stomach. She was scared of him hurting me, and suddenly I wondered if Evan was that kind of person. Vengeful, someone who was out to ruin everyone else's lives until he felt good in his own skin.

But even when the thought of him targeting me made me uneasy I wasn't backing down. She didn't have to face him alone this time, and we would figure this out together. But my main priority right now was to make sure she understood I wasn't going to let him take me away from her.

I walked closer, my hands grabbing her face, "I'm not going anywhere. No matter what he does."

She shook her head, "I should've stayed away from you... I should've left you out of all of this. My life is a fucking nightmare, and the last thing you need is someone like me ruining your plans..."

I felt my heart break  little, knowing that this was just her fear talking. I knew I couldn't take it to heart because this was Drew's natural way of trying to protect me, but I wasn't allowing her to do that to me or herself.

We deserved better than that.

I whispered, "We're going to find the information we need, including on Evan, understand? And then we're going to show him that he's made a mistake. You don't have to be afraid of him anymore, Drew."

Her eyes were hidden behind her eyelids but she nodded, her head trembling in my hands.

I whispered, "I'm not going to let him hurt you anymore."

~ ~ ~ ~

Days began passing quick, as if neither me or Drew could catch a grip on time. She had called the bank that was holding the account, fighting with them for hours to try and access it, but as of now had no luck whatsoever. They had faxed her the request her mom had put to lock the account as well, Drew hoping that it would lead her to figure out how to get to it. The money was locked, a simple four-digit number standing between her and the money, but accessing the code was the problem.

Me, on the other hand was desperately trying to find out any information on Evan and what he had been up to in the last five years. I had volunteered to do it considering I was sure Drew didn't want to, but the only person I knew that could help me was probably still butt-hurt after the Winter recital.

But Jordi was literally my last option.

He had of course ignored my texts and calls, so he was leaving me no choice but to show up at the talent firm he was now interning at. I knew it was going to be hard getting through to him but I had to do this for Drew, and Jordi was the only one who could possibly help me.

I walked inside, my eyes scanning the area for the familiar brown-haired guy I hadn't seen in almost two months. I didn't know what to expect, but when a pretty girl approached me I was forced to stop looking.

"Hi, can I help you?"

I nodded, "Um yea, is Jordi here?"

Her pearly smile never faded as she nodded, "Yea, he should be back any minute. He went pick up coffee."

I couldn't help but smirk to myself at the thought of big ole' Jordi being someone's coffee runner.

I sat in the waiting room, new faces walking in and out as I sat patiently, scanning the area and watching the door. He needed to hurry, I mean if he took too long the coffee would be too cold to drink.

Then finally there he was, walking through the door with five coffees in hand. He looked disheveled but I wasted no time as the girl at the front directed his attention to me. I couldn't muster up anything but a sly smile.

He set the coffee down as he rolled his eyes, giving me the hint I needed to see that I was unwelcome.

I stood, "Jordi, hey... it's been awhile."

He leaned against the counter, "It's been a while for a reason."

Well, good to know he hasn't changed.

I nodded, "I know, and look I'm sorry for all the hard feelings but... I really need your help."

I watched those olive-colored eyes study me hard, and I could tell his cold heart was melting. He tried to be tough on the outside but he was a softie on the inside, and I knew if someone he cared about needed help he would be there. 

"Is it life or death?"

I tilted my head, "Kind of."

"Damn," he responded, "Okay."

The gratefulness I felt was overwhelming, and suddenly I was glad to have Jordi on board. I had left things on edge with him but this let me know I owed him one down the road, but nothing weird of course.

"Your dad still works for the Boston PD, right?"

He nodded, "Yea why?"

I exhaled a breath of relief, thanking God that Jordi was originally from Boston just like Drew. Looks like they had something in common after all.

"I need him to look up a name for me, it's very important."

He removed a piece of paper from a nearby printer and handed me a pen, no questions asked. I bent down and wrote Evan Clark, and then continued to write his dad's name and his birth date Drew had given me. I folded it and handed it to him, making sure he stuck it into his pocket.

I pleaded, "Please do this for me, I can't even tell you how important it is."

A look of worry actually crossed his features, "Why do I get the feeling this involves Drew?"

Damn, he was smarter than he looked.

I nodded stiffly, "Because it does."

He shoved the paper into his pocket and looked down at me, "Bree look... I'm sorry, for what I did and all... I can tell she makes you happy. But if she's putting you into some sort of trouble-"

"She's not," I cut him off, not wanting him to get the wrong idea, "But thank you, it means a lot to hear that from you."

"No problem," He smiled, "And for the record, I'm cuter than her."

I shook my head, "That's debatable."

He laughed then, letting me know all the weird feelings between us were now at rest. I felt good knowing he was on my side now.

"I'll call my dad and get back to you as soon as possible."

I just smiled and pulled him into a hug, "Thank you, so much."

I turned to leave but before I made it out the door I heard him call, "Bree?"

I faced him.

He frowned, concern laced in his words, "Be careful."

I just smiled and nodded, letting myself walk out of the glass door and into the February cold.

~ ~ ~ ~ 

After I had met up with Jordi the Thursday after Drew's fight the time started passing slow. I was impatiently waiting to hear back from Jordi, hopeful that he had some information on Evan, but Friday night had come and there was still nothing. I was losing hope in the situation, and if he had bailed or changed his mind on helping me I knew we would be out of luck. He was the last line I had, and I needed him to take it.

Drew had made little to no progress on the bank account, and her last fight was tomorrow. We were both on edge, and I could tell her head was getting fuzzy with worry now that it was so close. She was less scared now but way more stressed out, and she really didn't know what to do. I had no idea either considering this entire week had been practically a waste. We had accomplished absolutely nothing on Evan or  the bank account he wanted, and the bad feeling in my stomach was now more familiar than ever.

I couldn't let Drew blow her last fight , not again, she couldn't keep doing this to herself. She needed to win tomorrow, no matter what Evan said to her a week prior. She knew that, and I knew that, and the last thing I was going to let happen was Evan getting the best of her again.

He needed to know that five years later it was now a different ball game.

Drew had spent nearly all day reading through the stacks of paperwork her mother's death had left her with, scanning every word about a million times. I was convinced she was driving herself crazy, and I understood, but I had a feeling there was nothing in the paperwork she was obsessing over.

She slammed the folder shut, startling me, "Fuck!"

I tried to calm her down, "Drew... it's okay..."

She just shook her head, raking her hands through her knotted hair that was disheveled from her constantly doing that. She was stressed and  tired, but as I watched her I wondered what she was planning on doing if she even got into the account.

I questioned, "What did the bank send you?"

She handed me the fax, allowing me to read a bunch of nonsense until the end where it simply stated: Access Pin Information provided to secondary-recipient: Drew Alyson Wilder.

I set the paper down and looked up at her while she just stared at me with a blank expression. She had calmed down a lot since I had talked to her last Saturday but she was still stressed over everything. I desperately wanted to help her but felt there was really nothing I could do even if I wanted. We seemed to be at a dead end with the entire situation.

She groaned, "You know something I'll never understand..." she paused, looking at her hands, "How some people just breeze through life. No struggles, no worries... they have everything they want and yet aren't happy. And then there are people like me, who have struggle after struggle and happiness would be so easy if just one thing disappeared for the rest of their life. It's so aggravating."

I reached for her, taking both of her hands in mine while trying to make her feel better, "You'll make it through this, just like you've made it through everything else. Give me a little more time on Evan and win your fight tomorrow. Everything's going to work out in the end."

Her light eyes remained on our conjoined hands, defeat seeming to already overtake her. She exhaled tiredly, "Why do you stay? Why do you put yourself through this?"

I didn't entirely understand why I did, I just knew leaving Drew seemed impossible, and her struggles were my struggles and I was okay with it. I was in love with her, and I had run for so long away from things that hurt me. I was basically tired of running all the time.

I shrugged, "Because running from things that scare me only hurt me in the long run. Why would I abandon you whenever you need me the most? Besides... I couldn't leave you if my life depended on it. I love you."

This time her eyes fell onto me, a tiny smile working it's way back onto her beautiful face. She was tired, so tired, but the worry wasn't allowing her to sleep. I wondered silently if this was all part of Evan's master plan to make her lose tomorrow due to mental and physical exhaustion. I couldn't let him stay in Drew's head, I had to make her remember where her priorities were.

 "I'm never going to fall asleep tonight..." she confessed.

I just squeezed her hands in response, "You have to... don't worry about him. Jordi will get back to me tomorrow and you're going to win. Easy breezy, alright?"

She just watched me, and I could tell me talking to her was loosening her up. I would talk to her all night if I had to, I would stay up and tell her how strong she was and how Evan wouldn't stand a chance against her. I would tell her everything she needed to hear till she felt comfortable enough to fall asleep, and I would be more than happy to do it.

"I don't think you understand how grateful I am to have you."

My heart fluttered in my chest at her words, making me realize she never failed to amaze me, even at her worst. It felt good to know she needed me as much as I needed her, and it felt good to know she allowed me to be this close enough to help her when she needed.

I smirked, "I do, don't worry."

She laughed then, and suddenly she was crawling over her bed towards me. One of her hands held herself up while the other cupped my cheek, pulling my lips into hers. A tremble ran up my spine as I kissed her, sighing in a sense of relief at the sensation. She tasted amazing, but I could feel something in her kiss, sadness and desperation.

I felt her hands both press against my cheeks then, holding my face to her as she laid over me. It finally reminded me of our first and only time so far, which was enough to light a fire inside of me. I had craved it again ever since but the whole Evan thing had been an instant mood killer.

 Maybe this was Drew's way of getting it off of her mind, and I was happy to oblige.

Her hips grinded against mine, her legs pushing the stack of papers off of her bed, giving her more room to move. I felt my skin heat up under her fingertips that trailed over my shoulders as her lips eagerly kissed against my neck. My body was shaking at the thought of Drew touching me again, taking off my clothes and getting out any anxiousness she felt inside of her.

But as soon as it had started it stopped, my body shrugging in disappointment.

Drew spoke, "Holy shit."

I looked up, "What?"

She climbed off of me then, my heart slamming against my chest while I watched her anxiously from her bed. She was standing in front of her dresser, opening the bottom drawer and removing old clothes to reveal yet another enclosed envelope.

I sat up, watching her shake her head in a sense of disbelief. I asked eagerly, "What's that?"

"My mom... she left me this. I haven't looked at it in years but... I just remembered..."

She tore open the top then, removing what seemed to be a hand-written letter along with some other legal documents. I stood and walked over to her to get a better look, feeling a sense of euphoria filling the room.

She stood then, nearly jumping in excitement "Oh my God..."

I still had no idea what I was looking at, but I asked, "Is that...?"

"It's the pin number to the account."

I shook my head, wondering how the hell Drew had forgotten she had put something that important in the most obvious place to look and hadn't realized until she was making out with me.

She nearly ran over to her laptop, pulling up the bank website and finding the locked account. She typed in the pin number that seemed to be random, at least to me, and then led her to another extension of the account. More security questions.

I read aloud, "What is your hometown?"

Drew didn't even hesitate, but instead of typing in Boston she typed in another town, which I instantly figured to be the original place Alice had been born. Then another security question popped up.

Drew answered it quickly, finally leading her to some form agreement she had to click and then that inevitably led her to a five digit number.

My eyes widened at the sight, "Holy shit..."

She leaned back in her chair, repeating me, "Holy... shit..."

The total amount read $75,000.00, and seeing that amount of money all in one place, now in the palm of Drew's hands totally changed the game.

I mumbled, "Now I understand why Evan wanted it so bad."

She just stared at the screen a bit longer before shaking her head in disbelief. I was shocked too, but this was a lot of money, especially to Drew who had struggled for so long financially here in New York. She was looking at financial freedom, at least for a really long time.

I sat on her lap then, pulling her out of her daze as those eyes lifted up to mine. She was happy, relieved, and for some reason this made me uneasy. She couldn't give this money to Evan, she wouldn't give one bit to him. She couldn't, because if she did it would only show him she was weak and would always give into his power trips.

I sighed, "What are you thinking...?"

I watched thoughts dance around behind those eyes, letting me know she was conjuring up something. She was torn, but looking at the money made her realize just how real this situation was. She was shocked most out of everything though.

"You're right."

I shook my head, "About?"

She snaked her arms around my waist, pulling me into her, "I'm not giving a fucking penny to him, and I'm winning tomorrow. No matter what. He's going to go back where he came from after tomorrow. I'll make sure of that."

I smiled to myself, seeing the Drew I loved shine right through all that insecurity and fear. She understood what I had said a week ago, it had finally clicked, and I couldn't be more proud of her. She was strong now, she wasn't the fragile teenager Evan had taken advantage of five years ago. She was Drew Wilder, total bad-ass that wasn't afraid of anything.

This was who she was meant to be.

I questioned, "Okay, so how did you all of a sudden remember where to look for the information. I'm kind of confused."

She smiled, laughing to herself, "Well, whenever I was kissing you I was thinking of something my mom had said a long time ago. Something while I was sitting in the hospital with her. She told me 'You know, that envelope I gave you, don't open it until you're older. It's for when you're serious about finally settling down with someone you love. When you're ready to start a life, Drew. Promise me you won't open it until then'."

I watched pain cross her features at the thought of her mom on her deathbed, it hurt me, causing me to hug her closer to me. I tried to lighten the mood, "You were thinking about your mom when we were making out?"

"I was thinking about settling and starting a life," She thought out loud, suddenly catching me off guard.

She read my expression wrong though because I watched her instantly grow uncomfortable.

She stuttered, "N-Not that I'm rushing or anything... I just, it was just a thought. For later. Not now... I just..."

I just sealed her lips off with my own, feeling a sense of warmth at the thought of Drew actually considering a future with me. It made me happy, and I had thought about the same thing myself multiple times. I was thinking about my life waiting for me back in Philadelphia, and how I wanted Drew to come with me. I didn't want to leave her here in New York, and hearing her say these things only made me love the idea even more.

Maybe we were on the same page. 

"I'm flattered you thought that, Drew," I reassured, giving her a smile.

She sighed in relief then, seeing that I wasn't freaked out at all at the thought of settling with Drew. I wasn't saying it would happen anytime soon, or that we were getting married next month, but the thought had it's... appeal. I felt something for Drew, something different and intense. She had the love and the passion, she was smart and funny and everything I loved in a person. It was hard to see my life without her, and although the thought of a future was scary it was also exciting at the same time.

She just sighed, "Seventy five thousand dollars..."

I squeezed her hand, "That's... a lot."

"I'm scared to even touch it."

"You don't have to," I chimed, knowing Drew was financially okay on her own as it was. Maybe she could still save it for later, just like her mom had asked.

"You're right," she nodded, "Besides, I should be focusing on winning tomorrow night."

I straddled her on the desk chair then, looking down at her, "Are you gonna be okay? Knowing he's there...?"

Her eyes fell, immediately letting me know she wasn't fond of the idea, "I don't know but I have no choice, but what I don't get is why Evan's there in the first place."

I nodded, "That makes two of us."

She just shook her head, "Maybe Jordi will have something for us tomorrow..."

"We can only hope," I assured.