Elizabeth's POV

"What am I doing?" Elizabeth asked herself as she stopped the car. She didn't want to easily give in to whoever has kidnapped her husband. She wasn't weak and never will be. She checked her phone again.

No new messages

Was the kidnapper just playing games with her? Or was she just the little puppet in this all? She was sick and tired of Harold's shady business trips. Now that he has to pay the price, she has gotten involved in all of this shenanigans. But what was she going to do. Harold was her husband after all. 'Was,' she thought. She glanced down at her wedding ring. The diamond glistened in the light. She was starting to question the word love? What was it? What did it mean? What purpose did it serve in the world if one was going to get hurt at some point? She placed her head on her hands and let the tears roll down. The tears she had been holding in for years. She was a mess. If only Harold knew the damage he was causing for everyone around him. She started the car again and drove home.

Lorelei's POV

The past two days were fine for Lorelei. She didn't mind going to detention because she didn't want to go to the Cohens. Stellar was still bitchy but didn't make eye contact with Lorelei. She never got a lot of homework to do. Which was kind of a relief. But in those past two days, Kyle had been ignoring her. If she'd try to start up and conversation, he'd cut her off with lame excuses of just ignore her questions. She didn't know why that got to her. "Lorelei middle name unknown Carson," Krystal snapped her fingers in front Lorelei's face to her her attention. They were heading to their Maths class. "Hmm? What were you saying?" Lorelei asked. She didn't notice Krystal talking until now. "Are you sure you're okay?" Krystal asked, showing some concerns about her friend. Lorelei nodded vigorously. "Of course I am. So what we're you complaining about?" she chuckled. "I'm not complaining! I'm venting. There's a difference," Krystal said. "Right. So what are you venting about, my good friend?" Lorelei mocked Krystal. Krystal rolled her eyes playfully. "We don't have dates to this dumb Dance Formal," she stated. "Do we need dates though? We could just go together, as friends," Lorelei suggested. She didn't know most of the guys in this school. Why would she what to go with them. She saw Krystal hiding a blush and smiled. "No! We can't go together. We just got here. They'll think we're losers," Krystal whined while throwing her hands to her sides. "Okay, first of all, people here already know I'm a loser. Secondly, you shouldn't care what people think of you," Lorelei said. "Well that easier said than done," Krystal said, making Lorelei chuckle again. She did look adorable when she's complai- no, venting. "Hurry up before we'll be late," Lorelei said, grabbing her friend's hand and pushing her through the sea of students.

"How can you be late for detention? I mean how can you be late for punishment?" Mr Finsbury said as Lorelei entered his class. "I don't know. You tell me," she said as she made her way to her seat. Mr Finsbury let out a huge sigh before reading his newspaper. "You know the rules by now. You're here for an hour. No talking or eating, blah blah blah," he said without moving his eyes from the newspaper. Lorelei looked around the classroom, searching for Stellar. She wasn't there. Again. Lorelei just shrugged and looked outside the window. She saw students getting pocked up by their parents while others got into the school bus. Ten minutes went past and Lorelei started to get bored. So she started tapping the table with her fingers. As she was about to look the other way, someone caught her eye. She looked out the window again and say Kyle walking with some other boy. Probably his friend Mark. She overhead the name from one of Kyle's calls. They were chatting away and laughing quite loudly. No sight of Stellar. Odd. Stellar was very clingy over Kyle. It looked like Kyle was making his way to the field for practice. She's never seen Kyle play before. She just knew that he was the best of the best. Well he had to, with his fast moves, built body of a Greek god. Lorelei snapped out of her thoughts. What was she thinking about such things. But then again, she wasn't lying. "Ms Carson!" Mr Finsbury barked her name. "Will you stopped that?" He asked. "Stop what?" Lorelei answered his question with a question of her own. "Your fingers!" He sounded very annoyed. 'My fingers?' Lorelei forgot that she was tapping the desk really loudly. "Sorry," she said as she removed her hand from the desk. "That's an extra hour for you," he said. Lorelei was about to complain but Mr Finsbury cut her off. "No ifs, ands or buts," he said, still very annoyed. "Where is Stellar?" Lorelei asked. She didn't care but she just wanted to know. "Some cheerleadi practice or something like that," he answered. No wonder Stellar wasn't with Kyle. It's because she knew she was going to see him during practice. "Now be quiet!" Mr Finsbury ordered. Lorelei let out a sigh and did as she was told.

Once detention was over, Lorelei rushed out the class to get out of the school premises. She looked around the parking lot but saw no sign of Charles. Weird. Her phone rang from her bag. She took it out and answered the phone. "Hello?" she said. She didn't recognise the number but at the same time she did. "Oh Lorelei, right?" A woman's voice asked. "Yes. Who is this?" she asked. "My apologies. I did think you might forget with all your schoolwork. I'm Cassandra, Bella's mother," Cassandra introduced herself. Then Lorelei remembered the time when she was at the Toy Temptations. "I'm so sorry. I totally forgot. Do you still need a baby sitter?" Lorelei asked, running her fingers through her hair. She hasn't noticed how long her hair has grown since she moved to live with the Cohens. "Oh yes please. Bella can't wait. She's been jumping around all over the place," she said. Lorelei smiled. "I think I'll be there in 20 minutes. You don't mind, do you," she asked. "No, not at all. See you then." Then she hung up. Lorelei wasn't even sure if Charles would arrive by then. She sat by a nearby bench and waited. She placed her head on her hands. "Hey there," she heard someone say. She raised her head to see a boy her age with brown hair and freckles splattered across his nose. "Hi?" Lorelei was not in the mood for this. "You look lonely. Mind if I sit-," Lorelei tossed her bag next to her so there was no space for him to sit. "Sorry. Seems like there's no space," she forced a smile. But he wasn't going to give up that easily. "No matter. I can just stand here and admire your beauty," he looked at her with a smirk plastered across his face. 'And here we go,' Lorelei rolled her eyes. "Dude, listen. I'm not in the mood and I'm quite late for something important. You being here is not making matters any better," she crossed her arms. "So it's best if you leave me alone," she looked at the other way. "Really? I can make you mood a bit better," he stepped closer, "if you agree to go with me to the Dance Formal." 'Oh that's it!' As soon as Lorelei was about to punch his freckles off from his nose, she saw someone gripped the boy's shoulder and pull him away from Lorelei. "Lost Carl?" Kyle asked the boy. "No sir," Carl's voice cracked. "Good. Find your way back to the field and give me 50 push ups. And I will know if you didn't do them," he said with a smirk on his face. He patted Carl on the back. "Now go along," he said. Carl looked at Lorelei for one past time before running off. "I didn't need your help," Lorelei grumbled. "Obviously," he rolled his eyes. He removed Lorelei's bag from the bench and sat next to her. "Why are you still here?" He asked. Lorelei looked at him with a frown on her face. "What I mean is why are you still here at school. Didn't detention end an hour ago?" he asked. "Oh. Mr Finsbury decided to be a jerk and added another hour," she said. "Yep. That sounds like something he would do," Kyle smiled. There was silence between them. It was awkward. Lorelei felt the tension. "So, how was practice?" She asked. Kyle just shrugged. 'Back to ignoring me, I see,' she thought. "When is Charles getting here?" she mumbled under her breath while glancing at the time on her phone. "You have a phone?" Kyle asked, really surprised. "Of course I do. I just don't use it often," she answered. She got it from grandma Lucia because Malcom didn't want her having a phone. She still didn't understand how Cassandra got her number. "You seem impatient. Got somewhere to be?" Kyle asked, looking at Lorelei with the corner of his eye. "You could say that," she shrugged. "Well, can I come with?" Kyle asked. Lorelei stared at him with her eyes widely open but he didn't meet her gaze. "Really? Why?" she asked. Kyle stayed quite for a moment, probably thinking of the reason. "I just need a break. That's all," he shrugged. He looked at his muddy boots, making him look like a toddler awaiting his punishment. Lorelei smiled at the sight. Kyle finally looked her in the eye. "I don't have to come along," he said but Lorelei place her hand on top of his. "No no no. It's fine. Besides, I'll need all the help I could get," she said. "What does that mean?" Kyle raised a brow. Lorelei heard a hoot from a distance. She turned around and saw Charles driving up. "You'll see. Come on," she pulled him up and raced to the car. "Dear Charles, can you take us here," Lorelei gave him the piece of paper she got from Cassandra. Charles read the address. "Yes ma'am."

"Thank you so much for coming over," Cassandra said as she hugged Lorelei. She looked at Kyle who was standing behind her, observing the new environment. "Is this your boyfriend?" she whispered into Lorelei's ear. "What? Nooo. He's just here to help me with Bella," she said. Luckily Kyle didn't hear their conversation. "The garden's beautiful," Kyle said out aloud. "Oh, thank you. I do my garden to calm down when things get hectic in my life," she said. "Is it all the time?" Kyle asked. Lorelei threw a pebble at him. "Oww! I meant that as a compliment. That she has green fingers," he scowled. "It's fine. I get it," Cassandra smiled. "Come in. It's freezing out," she gestured for them to go inside. As they got in, Lorelei's jaw dropped. "Wow," was all she could manage. The house didn't look as exquisite and spacious outside. "I guess you should never judge a book by its cover," Kyle whispered to her.

"Oh this old place? I try," Cassandra said, very flattered with herself. "So you just stay here with just Bella?" Lorelei asked, admiring the interior design. "I have a son. He's in university but he came to visit for the weekend," she said. "But the weekend hasn't started," Kyle pointed out. Lorelei glared at him. Cassandra just laughed, "I know but it was thoughtful of him to come over early. He couldn't take care of Bella because he's at the library studying." Lorelei touched the smooth table. She looked at the wooden floors that were clean and polished. "You like?" Cassandra smirked. "Like? I love it! This is what I wanna get when I'm older," she beamed. Kyle cleared his throat. "So where is Bella?" he asked. "Oh yes. I'll go and get her," Cassandra went upstairs. "How do you know her?" Kyle asked Lorelei. "I met her at a toy shop," she answered but noticed that Kyle was not satisfied with the answer. "A toy shop? You? What were doing there?" He looked like he was about to burst out in laughter. "It was calming. Then I met Bella who is very adorable once you get to see her," Lorelei said. "Lorry!" A little girl with blonde curls ran downstairs and hugged her legs. "Hiiii Lorryyy!" She said loudly. Lorelei went down to her height and hugged her back. "Hey Bella," she smiled. "I wore my bestest dress today," she did a little twirl. She wore a sparkly pink dress and matching shoes. "You look splendid," Lorelei complimented. "Who's he?" Bella said as she walked over to Kyle. "He's a friend of mine," Lorelei said. "No I'm not. I'm the goblin monster, and I'm here to eat you," Kyle swooped Bella from the ground and twirled her around making Bella giggle. When he sat her down, she ran to the stairs. "You can't catch me, monster," she stuck out her tongue. "Oh yeah? Let's see about that," and the chase begun. Bella ran upstairs still giggling with Kyle on her tail. "Thank goodness I can go out knowing that Bella is in good hands," Cassandra said as she smiled weakly. Lorelei smiled back and agreed with her. "Well, I'm gonna head off. I'll be back in two hours, tops," Cassandra said. "It's fine. Have fun," she smiled as Cassandra exited. Bella ran downstairs and hid behind Lorelei. "The monster is gonna get us!" she cried out. "I'm coming down!" Kyle shouted from upstairs. "Oh no!" Bella panicked. Lorelei giggled. "We gotta hide," she picked up Bella and ran to find a good hiding place. They rain into the kitchen and hid under the counter. Bella was a giggling fit. "Ssshhh! Or else we'll get caught," Lorelei lowered her voice. Bella covered her mouth and nodded. They heard footsteps and stayed dead quiet. "I know you guys are here," Kyle taunted. Lorelei place her index finger on her mouth to gesture for Bella to keep quiet. "Gotcha!" Kyle said. Bella screamed in delight. Kyle grabbed Lorelei's arm. "He's got me! Run Bella," Lorelei dramatically screamed. Bella ran in between Kyle's legs and escaped. Lorelei laughed. Kyle smiled seeing her smile. "Let's go get her before we lose her," she said. "Right," he helped her up and chased after Bella.

"I'm hungry," Bella whined while they were playing with puzzles on the cool floor. "Really? I gave you something to eat," Lorelei said. "Rabbit food is not food," Bella pouted. "Then why is there food in the name?" Kyle asked. "I dunno," she jumped on Kyle's stomach. "Wow, you're a lot heavier after eating," he said, making Bella giggle. "I'll go check if there any snacks," Lorelei stood up and headed to the kitchen. She opened the cupboards. "Hmm..." she looked at what they had to offer. "Cookies? Maybe. Gummy bears! But that won't fill her up," she closed the cupboards and opened the fridge. "Left over pizza? I'll take it," she took the box out and headed to the living room. "Pizza!" Bella jumped up. "Does Elizabeth know we're here?" Kyle asked. "Well..." she opened the box. "You didn't tell her, did you?" Kyle raised a brow. "I can't tell her everything that happens in my life," Lorelei stated as she gave Bella a slice. "I'll call her," Kyle stood up and went to the kitchen. "I hope it's not too cold," Lorelei said, as Bella munched on her pizza. "I'll like it cold," she smiled her adorable smile. "Me too," she took a slice and gobbled it. Bella giggled loudly. "Hey mom! I'm home," said a voice coming from the front door. Lorelei stood up and went to go see who it was. She said a tall boy with rooty blonde hair wearing a red flannel shirt, black jeans and sneakers along with a red scarf. He had a double chin and thin pink lips. His eyes were the colour of an enchanted forest. Lorelei couldn't help but stare. "She said she's cool with it," Kyle said from the kitchen. The boy turned to see Lorelei looking at him. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" he asked. "Oh I- uhmm..." Lorelei began to stutter. "I don't think that's a definite answer. Bella!" He called out. Bella came running to hug him. Then ran back to Lorelei. "That's him," she said, tugging at her skirt. "Who?" Lorelei asked looking down at the overly excited girl. "Lorelei, I was thinking-," he stopped as he saw the boy standing by the door. "Who is he?" he asked. Lorelei shrugged. "I should be asking you that," he said with a scowl. "Come on, Bella," he said. "No," Bella pouted. "What?" he frowned. "I'm Lorelei. Bella's babysitter. And that's Kyle, my friend," she introduced herself and Kyle to the boy. "Did you really have to blow our cover like that?" Kyle whispered into her ear. "Sshh!" Lorelei hushed. The boy took him a while to process all of this. "Oh right! Mon told me you were coming. I might have forgotten. I'm Scott," he said. "Hi Scott," Lorelei waved. Kyle raised a brow at the action. "So what we're you guys doing before I got here?" He asked as he placed his books down. "We were eating pizza," Bella said. "Pizza? My pizza?!" Scott asked. "Oops," both the girls said.

"How's university?" Lorelei asked as she sat on the counter watching Scott as he took out his textbooks. "It's not bad once you get the hang of it. Nothing in life is ever easy," he said. "What course are you taking?" Lorelei asked. She wanted to get to know him a bit more while they're here. "Neuroscience. It's really difficult but interesting at the same time," he said. Scott set aside his textbooks and looked at Lorelei. "But enough about me. Let's talk about you. What do you like, what don't you like, who is Lorelei Carson?" He said, a smirk played across his lips. "I can't be that interesting. I mean, you study neuroscience. I'm still in high school," Lorelei chuckled. "Okay, try me," Scott said. Lorelei blushed a bit but looked at the floor so Scott wouldn't notice. "Well, I like reading about mystery and study different mythologies. I can use a bow and arrow. I'm kind of a nerd but people just don't know it," Lorelei listed. "And you're telling me that's not interesting?" Scott chuckled. "Pretty much," Lorelei beamed. "Kids, I'm home," Cassandra said. "We're over here," Lorelei said, jumping off the counter. "Oh, I see you're back already. And you already met Lorelei," Cassandra grinned. "Yeah, I did," Scott rubbed the back of his neck. "Where's Bella?" Cassandra asked. "in the living room with Kyle," Lorelei lead Cassandra to a sleeping Kyle and Bella's head rested on his stomach. "Now isn't that adorable," Scott said as he picked up Bella. "The cutest," she lightly kicked Kyle awake. "What?" he groaned. "We gotta go. Come on, you big baby," she she pulled him up. "You're leaving already?" Scott asked. "We have to. I gotta go prepare for this dance my school is having," she said. "A dance you say? Got a date?" Scott asked. "We do not speak of that," Lorelei said, yet playfully smiled at him. Scott chuckled. "Got it," Bella shifted her head on Scott's shoulder. "But I guess I do need one," she said. "Need or want?" Scott asked. "Is there a difference," she said as she watch Kyle get up and stretched. "I can go with you," Scott blushed a bit. "Really?" Lorelei asked, hiding her own blush. They both smiled at each other. "Now this is adorable," Cassandra said. They even forgot that she was in the room. "Lorelei, we gotta go," Kyle said. "Right. See you on Saturday?" She asked Scott. "See you on Saturday," he agreed. They both waved at each other as Lorelei and Kyle left. "So you got a date?" Kyle mocked her. "Shut up!" She punched his arm. "You're so violent," he rubbed his arm. "Oh. Here comes Charles," she ran to the car. "Wish that date was me," he said under his breath before following her to the car.