The next few days of break went by quickly. I spent most of my time with Aiden, Nick, and Mikey.

The day after Christmas, when my aunt and uncle went back to work, I decided to finally take Mikey to get his haircut. I took my car out and drove to a nearby hair salon. Aiden and Nick came along.

"Nick, I think you could use a haircut, too," Aiden commented from the passenger seat.

"No way. I'm growing it out," Nick replied from the back.

"Renee won't let me grow mine out," Mikey said.

"That's because long hair on guys makes them look like wanna-be rockstars or something. It's just dumb unless you're like...Johnny Depp," I said. Aiden laughed next to me and I felt my lips twitch slightly.

"I think it looks hardcore," Nick said.

"The only red-head I've ever seen with long hair is that guy from We The Kings," Aiden said.

"And it looks like a mess," I said.

"It actually suits him," Aiden said. I gave him a look. "Kidding. It looks horrible," he said, a faint smile at his lips.

"Seriously, Nick. You should get your hair cut, too," I said, looking in my rearview mirror at him.

"You drive really slow," Aiden noted, pointing at my speedometer. I slapped his hand away. The boys laughed in the back seat.

"We're here," I said, pulling into the parking lot. We got out of the car and walked into the salon.

"Hi, Renee! How are you?" the lady at the front desk, Lisa, said, greeting me with a smile.

"Hi, Lisa. I'm fine, thanks," I replied.

"What can I do for you today? Your hair has gotten really long in the past few months," she said.

"Yeah, I'm trying to grow it out. But it's not me that needs the hair care. Mikey needs a haircut," I said, pushing him forward slightly. Lisa laughed her belly-laugh, running a hand through his silky blonde hair.

"You're right, he does," she said.

"Told you," I told Mikey when he looked up at me with pouty eyes.

"And who are your friends?" Lisa asked, glancing at Aiden and Nick, who were standing behind us and looking at the posters on the wall.

"They're from school. The little one needs a trim, too," I said, pointing at Nick.

"No I don't!" Nick yelled.

"Shut up, loser. Yes, you do," Aiden replied, nudging him forward. Lisa laughed and looked at me with twinkling hazel eyes.

"He's a cutie," she told me, winking. I felt color rise to my cheeks and thanked God that Aiden hadn't heard the comment. "All right, kids. Come this way and let's cut some of that hair off!" Lisa said, ushering Nick and Mikey into the salon chairs. Aiden and I took our seats in the waiting room. While we waited, Aiden pulled out a book that had different hairstyles in it.

"This would look great on you," he said, flipping to a page that had a woman with super cropped hair that was dyed blue. I punched him in the arm and he laughed. I pulled a book out, too and flipped through some pages.

"This would look fabulous on you," I said, pointing at a man who had a mullet.

"Obviously. I'd look good in anything," he said. I rolled my eyes at him and he chuckled. "What if I got a perm that curled my hair?" he asked as we continued to flip through pages. I struggled to fight back a laugh as I imagined Aiden with curly poodle hair.

"Is that a smile I see?" he asked, pointing to my lips. I slapped his hand away and he wiggled his eyebrows at me. "I think it's working. I'm totally going to make you smile before we graduate," he said.

"Get out of here," I replied, turning my face away from him.

We both put the books back and sat back against the chairs. He turned his head to face me and I looked back at him.

"I bet you had all the boys wrapped around your finger in your old school," he said.

"What makes you say that?" I asked.

"You are incredibly beautiful," he replied. I felt color rise to my cheeks and I looked down at my hands folded on my lap.

"Stop," I told him.

"Stop what? Telling the truth?" he asked.

"Aiden..." I muttered.

"Renee, I'm dead serious. I've never met anyone as pretty as you," he said.

"I bet you tell that to all the girls," I said.

"No, only the ones that really are very beautiful. Which makes only you," he replied. I turned to face him again. "You know why you remind me of a porcelain doll?" he asked.

"Because I'm creepy," I replied. His lips turned up in a smile slightly.

"No, because you are extremely fragile. Even though that doll creeped me out, it was considered to be really beautiful. Keily thought it was beautiful. But it was so delicate. Just like you," he said. "You've got a lot more than just looks, Renee. You've got so much more going for you and you don't even realize it," he added.

"I'm not delicate," I said, trying to make my voice sound convincing enough.

"I'll believe that when you do," he answered. I met his gaze and became locked in his intense stare. He reached out and brushed a strand of my hair back from my face.

"You're beautiful," he whispered. I could feel my heart racing faster and faster. I wondered if he could hear it. It seemed like it was pounding in my ears. I had no idea how to respond to him. I'd never been called beautiful before. Ever. Except by Ben when we had our first kiss. But other than that, every guy had always referred to me as 'hot' or 'pretty' or 'sexy'. No one had ever called me beautiful. And although I wouldn't admit it, it felt nice to know that someone was looking past my face and at the personality that lay beneathe.

"Done!" Lisa exclaimed, bringing Nick and Mikey out to us. Aiden and I moved away from each other quickly and stood up. I nearly smiled when I saw Mikey, his hair cut shorter in his pudding-bowl haircut, his bangs swept to the side.

"Well, you guys are going to steal the hearts of all the ladies out there," Aiden commented.

"They've already got mine!" Lisa laughed. We gave her polite, fake smiles and then paid for the haircuts before leaving.

As we walked back to the car, I was aware of the fact that Aiden had a knowing smile on his face, that matched the look in his eyes whenever he glanced at me.

Could it be possible that I was falling for him?

                                         ~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You CANNOT wear that to the party, Aiden," I said as he walked out of a fitting room with a lime green blazer on.

"I think it's festive," he commented, looking at himself in the mirror. Nick and Mikey laughed.

"Tell him he looks like a clown," I asked them.

"He looks cool," Mikey said.

"Yeah, like a rockstar," Nick agreed.

"See? They know what's up," Aiden said, high-fiving them.

"My aunt will throw you out of the house," I told him.

"Relax. I wasn't actually going to buy it. Loosen up a bit, Renee," he said, winking at me before walking back into the fitting room to try on another outfit. I glared at him.

"I am relaxed," I said.

"Right," he called. I rolled my eyes and went to look through the dresses for something to wear.

My aunt's spectacular New Year's Eve party was that night and we had nothing to wear. We were out shopping for clothes and Aiden was making things difficult by fooling around.

"Are you buying something, Renee?" Nick asked, coming up next to me.

"No. I already have a dress," I answered.

"I bet it looks really pretty on you," Nick said sheepishly. I raised my eyebrows slightly. I was going to have to tell Aiden about Nick's crush on me.

"Thanks, Nick," I replied, haphazardly, with a forced smile.

"Ok, got something," Aiden said, coming up to us, Mikey following him.

"You didn't show me," I said.

"You didn't show me your dress," he replied.

"You never asked," I said.

"Well, since I haven't seen your dress, you can't see what I'm going to wear," Aiden said. Mikey laughed and high-fived him. I rolled my eyes.

"Aiden, I have to approve of what you're going to wear so my aunt doesn't kill you," I said.

"She won't. Trust me," he replied, winking at me and going to the register.

"I'm paying," I said, butting him aside.

"No, it's my suit. I'm paying," he said, pushing me back.

"Aiden! You paid for our clothes that other day. Now it's my turn," I said, struggling to move him out of the way. The employee at the register watched us in confusion.

"That was a gift! Go away!" he cried, flicking me on the shoulder.

"Don't take his money," I said to the employee, who blinked at me.

"Don't listen to her. She's a raging lunatic that followed me from the mental institute," he said.

"And he's a criminal with forged money," I said.

"Lame," Aiden said.

"Aiden," I said flatly. He gave me a look.

"Renee," he replied, handing the employee his card.

"Boys are dumb," I said, huffing and walking away.

"But you can't live without us!" he called after me.

I rolled my eyes to myself.

                                                    ~~~~~~~~~~

I sighed as I looked at my appearance in the full-length mirror on the inside door of my closet.

My aunt had bought be a lavendar and black dress that was form fitting from the top and then flowed out at the bottom. I felt exposed as I felt a cold drift reach my bare shoulders. I was going to wear my hair up in an up-do, but decided to leave it down because I felt so uncomfortable with my shoulders exposed. I touched my hand to my wavy dark brown hair and for a moment, a picture of my mother flashed before my mind's eye.

I looked just like her. She had dark brown hair, pale skin, and wide blue eyes. And she was beautiful.

"Renee, you look breath-taking," I could hear her say.

I felt my heart drum against my rib cage as thoughts and memories flooded my mind. I shook my head. No. I needed to be firm right now. I had to be strong for when I told Ben everything later on that evening.

I sighed and walked out into my room. I pulled open my balcony door and stepped outside into the freezing cold of the dark, winter night. I felt a shudder run down my spine and breathed out, watching as my breath formed a cloud in front of my face. I placed my hands on the stone of the balcony railing and looked out at my relatives' backyard, immersed in memories.

                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~

                                                            Aiden's POV

I knocked and walked into Renee's room, feeling a gust of cold air when I stepped inside. At first I thought the heater was broken in her room. But then I saw that the balcony doors were open. And Renee was standing out there.

In the freezing cold.

With no coat on.

I let out a sigh of frustration. She really was stupid sometimes. She inflicted pain upon herself for no reason. I walked out onto the balcony silently and then stood next to her.

She didn't look up when I stood next to her. She continued to stare blankly out at the darkness of the night.

"Renee, you're going to catch pneumonia out here. Get back inside," I said. She didn't move. "Renee," I said, waving my hand in front of her face. She blinked, as if just now realizing that I was there. She turned to face me, her ocean blue eyes wide.

I was struck--and not for the first time--by her incredible beauty. As I saw her standing in front of me, dressed in her purple and black gown, I felt breathless. I couldn't find the words to describe how beautiful she was.

So instead, I reached out with my hand, touching her face and softly stroking her cheek. I pulled her closer to me with my other hand. She stood in front of me, her face slightly tilted upwards so she could look directly into my eyes.

Suddenly, I had the crazy urge to kiss her.

I felt my heart race as an overwhelming emotion fell over me. Here was this beautiful, broken girl standing in my arms and I had no idea what to tell her, what to say to her. It was the first time, ever, that I had nothing to say.

I wanted to tell her that she was beautiful. I wanted to tell her that I was here for her. I wanted to tell her what I was feeling right now.

But how?

I couldn't think of any other way, so I started to lean in slightly.

I was shocked when she leaned in, too. And as our faces grew closer, our lips nearer, my heart began to race faster and faster. And just when we were mere inches away from each other, we heard Renee's door open with a bang.

"What the f**k?! Why is it so cold in here?!" we heard Laura shriek.

Renee and I pulled back quickly, our eyes full of confusion.

"Mom wants you guys downstairs. ASAP. And close the f**king balcony door, idiots," she snapped. Then she walked out of the room. Renee and I glanced at each other. Then, she ducked her head and went inside her room and then disappeard out her door, her purple dress trailing behind her.

I watched after her longingly. I had been so close.

Stupid Laura.

                                                           End of Aiden's POV

                                                                ~~~~~~~~~~~

I felt my cheeks burning as I raced down the stairs. The sound of people chatting loudly and classy music playing filled my ears as I descended the stairs.

He almost kissed me.

He almost kissed me.

Hell. I almost kissed him.

I felt my heart beating faster and faster as I thought this and I didn't realize where I was going until I bumped right into someone. I gasped and felt a pair of arms grab me before I fell to the ground. I looked up to see my saviour and saw Ben, who was looking dapper in a sharp black tux.

"In a hurry?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at me, his blue-green eyes twinkling.

"Ben!" I exclaimed, my eyes widening.

"Hey, Ren. How are you?" he asked, taking in my distracted expression.

"Better," I blurted out. I bit my lip, realizing that my answer probably made no sense to him. He looked at me, confused, just a five year old squeezed between us and ran up the stairs.

"Wha-?" he began.

"Benny!" I heard the annoying voice of Laura squeal. We both groaned.

"Laura," Ben said curtly, nodding at Laura as she walked up to us in a slinky long red dress.

"My goodness. You've gotten so big," she said, squeezing his arm. Ben gave me a horrified look and I backed away. That was his problem to deal with. Right now, I needed to find Mikey, who I knew was running around causing chaos like the other children.

I was surprised that it was already so crowded. It had only been a little more than half an hour since the start of the party.

"Renee!" I heard someone's voice call. I turned to see Ben's parents waving at me. I forced a weak smile and went up to them, my stomach sinking with each step.

"Eva! Klark! How are you?" I asked.

"We're doing all right. How are you?" Eva, Ben's mother, asked me. I shrugged.

"You know..." I muttered.

"Holding up all right, kiddo?" Klark, Ben's father, questioned, concern in the blue-green eyes that his son inherited

"I'm fine for the most part," I answered, my voice quiet. "Thanks for not telling Ben about...you know..." I trailed off.

"Oh, sweetie. You wanted us to keep it from him, so we did," Eva told me, patting my shoulder.

"Thanks," I replied, glancing down at my hands. "I just wanted as few people to know as possible. My whole family did," I added.

"We understand, hun. You don't have to explain it to us," Klark said. I smiled graciously at them before excusing myself and leaving to continue my search for Mikey.

"Looking for someone?" I heard Aiden say as he walked up to me, Mikey trailing behind him, with Nick bringing up the rear. He looked like a mother duck leading her ducklings around.

I grasped Mikey by the arm and squatted down in front of him.

"Mikey! Don't run around, ok? The kids here are crazy and if they break something, Aunt Meredith is going to find a way to blame us. Hear me?" I told him.

"Yeah, I know," Mikey said, glancing at the children running around recklessly. He frowned. I knew he wanted to have fun. All the other kids were. I sighed and stood up and ruffled his hair.

"Ok, now go hang out with Nick and play nice," I said, ushering him off. He and Nick trudged away, leaving Aiden and I alone.

"Renee, look--" he started. Over his shoulder, I saw Ben making his way through the crowd towards us. I turned my attention back to Aiden and shook my head.

"Don't. Not right now. Later," I said, just as Ben came up to us. He gave me a glare as he stood next to Aiden without realizing who it was.

"If you ever leave me alone with that crazy--" he started, but then glanced next to him and saw Aiden. "Oh. Hi Aiden," Ben said, off-handedly. "Anyway, if you ever leave me with that crazy bitch again, I swear I will feed you to her," he threatened me.

"I had to deal with her all break. Spare me," I replied.

"She's been pretty horrible," Aiden agreed.

"She's the devil with over-active hormones. She'll throw herself at anything with a male sexual organ," Ben said, a twinkle in his eye. Aiden laughed, causing Ben to smile slightly.

"Is Jen here?" I asked.

"Nah. She's on a cruise with her family," Ben replied.

"Oh. Fun. I have a purse I wanted to give her," I said.

"Gift?" he asked.

"My aunt has extravagent taste in fashion," I replied. He nodded understandingly.

"That I can believe," he said, glancing at Aiden awkwardly.

"Ummm...I'm going to go see if the kids are doing all right," Aiden said, side-stepping us and walking in the direction towards the stairs. He was probably about to hide out in his room until the New Year's countdown.

"So, how's break going?" he asked me, nodding after Aiden.

"Surprisingly well," I answered. He raised his eyebrows at me.

"You seem happier than before," he said. I looked at him, confused.

"What do you mean?" I asked. He shrugged.

"You were so quiet in school. You look better now. Is that what you meant when I asked you how you were before?" he questioned.

I looked down at the ground.

He was probably mistaking relief for happiness. Since telling Aiden about what happened, and knowing that someone out there knew about my parents and that could related to that someone, I felt like a burden had been lifted off my shoulders. I wasn't happy; no, that wasn't the emotion. I was relieved. I didn't have to go through this alone anymore. 

I looked back up at Ben, who was studying me with the eyes that had always intrigued me.

"Is everything all right?" he asked me.

"Almost," I replied. He raised his eyebrows at me.

"Can we go somewhere?" I asked him.

"Where?" he asked.

"Anywhere. Just, away from all these people," I said, glancing around.

"Basement," he said, pointing to the ground, indicating the basement that was usually kept locked. Brandon's room was down there and when he was away at school, we ended up just locking the whole place up.

We made our way down the stairs. I reached up above the doorframe and pulled the key out. I opened the door and we went in, closing it behind us. It was dark and cold down here. I had always hated the basement; even as a child.

Ben flipped the light switch and the room became illuminated.

"We had lots of good memories down here," he said, walking over to the couches, which my aunt had updated long since Ben and I had fallen out.

"Yeah, memories," I repeated, sitting down next to him. He looked at me, his expression patient.

"What did you want to talk about?" he asked me after a few moments of silence, in which the only sound I could hear was that of my heart beating in my chest.

I looked up at him. This was it. I had to tell him.

The moment was now.

____________________________________________________________________________

A/N: Long chapter! =) Hopefully this will keep you satisfied for the next 2-3 weeks. I'm in severe crunch mode right now. I've got two of the biggest exams of my life coming up next week (not really, but I'm being dramatic right now) and then finals.

So please bear with me, guys. I just really need to focus on school.

When I'm done with finals, I'll finish this story and then get to updating Trinity High regularly. I will also start a new story that I had an idea for.

Sorry about not updating! I promise I'll make it up to you!

Leave me a comment and VOTE!!

XOXO