"So, are there any other parts of this building that I should know about?" I asked Jared, wanting to get on with our tour. "Yes," he said, snapping back to the reality of taking me around the place. "Two more. First, we'll go visit the garden, and then I'll show you the library." He walked me to the door that was on the opposite side of the detention house. The door led outside to a massive, beautiful garden.

Flowers crowded ten flowerbeds laid out in rows along the side of the building, and the grass was surprisingly green for winter. It had been trimmed nicely. I noticed a clear roof over the top of it and realized why the flowers and grass were growing so splendidly. The garden was actually a garden that was inside a greenhouse.

A stone statue of an angel was poised with magnificent posture in the middle of the garden. The angel was looking off at the universe, and I noticed that one hand was upheld to the sky, while the other laid, palm-open, in the air. The angel also had beautifully carved wings and a halo that sparkly rhinestones sat atop. Jared noticed me looking at it and smiled.

"She's an angel of love," he said. "The rhinestones were a result of Cope allowing the kids to decorate her one summer. But, you see her open palm? For as long as I can remember, people have been putting notes in her hand. They're notes about what they want in a lover. Like, what characteristics. The notes are changed every day. You have to be up before the sun if you want to be able to put a note in her palm. If someone picks up your note, then they want to be with you. If there's no note in her hand during the middle of the day, then you can assume that someone here is going to become a couple very soon. Some people sign the notes, some people don't. Personally, I think it's a nice mystery if you go anonymous. I always did."

I smiled, already entranced by the angel. Jared had such amazing stories to tell about the people and traditions at COPE. I was beginning to think that having him as a roommate would be the best thing that ever happened to me.

Suddenly, we heard the sound of feet behind us. I whirled around, afraid. A young boy stood with his hands up in the air. "Whoa there, tiger," he said, smirking. "I don't want the adrenaline to cause you to have a heart attack. I mean, I know I'm hot, but I wouldn't want to be the cause of your death now, sweet cheeks." I looked over at Jared, rolling my eyes.

Is this guy for real?

I took some time to study him - he had soft, dirty blonde hair and was wearing a simple shirt with some club on it, and jeans. I noticed that he had on cowboy boots but didn't seem to be very 'redneck' at all.

"Ignore him," Jared said. "This one here will flirt with anything that breathes." "I can tell," I said. The boy approached the angel statue and said, "Hey, lay off Jare. I'm actually here to leave a note in the angel."

Silence.

"That joke was so funny I forgot to laugh," Jared said sarcastically. The boy smiled a grin that was surprisingly innocent for who I had pegged him to be.

Fuckboy.

Or?

Fuckboy mask.

The boy climbed on top of the angel's pedestal and started to put the note down in the angel's hand, but cursed when he saw another note already perched in her palm instead.

"Watch it," Jared admonished. The boy rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Like I haven't done worse." "Do you really want to be my new roommate's first example of what happens when you break the rules?" Jared asked the boy sternly. He sighed and said, "No. Sorry, Jared." Jared smiled and patted the boy's shoulder. "All's forgiven, Danny-boy." The newcomer grimaced at the name, and Jared laughed.

"So, who's note was already in the angel's hand this time?" Jared asked the boy. "Ash's again," he said, wincing. "She just won't give up on the whole 'My soulmate will find me' crap."

"Says the one who was going to leave a note," I spoke up, smirking. "Shut up, newbie." I rolled my eyes as Jared laughed. "Okay, you two, so family bonding time over. Should I introduce you?" "I can introduce myself," the boy said haughtily. Jared put his hands in the air in an exclamation of defeat. "Okay, your Highness. You have the floor."

The boy stuck out his hand for me to shake. His grip was firm and strong, and reminded me of my father, in a good way. "I'm Reese," I said. "I just got here, like - " I paused to check my watch, "An hour and a half ago." He nodded. "I figured you were new, since Jared here was showing you around."

"I'm Daniel, by the way."

"Nice to meet you," I said, smiling at him. Something about him made me think that there was more to his story than just what he was showing me at that moment. Of course, if he had landed at COPE, there must be more to the story than what he let on, because he was there for a reason, too.

"Nice to meet you, too," Daniel said politely. He still had ahold of his note, and was gripping it like it was the most precious thing in the world to him. I almost smiled. It was kind of funny that he was so protective of a note that stated what he wanted in a significant other, yet he had come into the garden using a mask that screamed, 'Fuckboy'.

Yet, I didn't think he was a fuckboy at all.