LEVI DIDN'T SPEAK ABOUT what had happened, but he didn't need to for Ella to see it still weighed heavily on his mind. Though he pretended like nothing was going on, he was clearly quieter than normal. It was not her place however to speak on how he handled his trauma, only to support him in the best way she could. Finding the right words to do so was difficult, especially when she hadn't been in the same situation before. Her issues with her father never had been because they weren't close, just because he wasn't here anymore. She didn't know which one was worse; to know him and hate him or to love him and miss him.

The air between Mia and Will seemed somehow changed as well. Where they had been close and friendly with each other before, they were more stiff now, Mia's voice rising in pitch every time they spoke. If it had been somebody else Ella would have said they had hooked up, but she knew these two were too precious to even think about it. Hell, Mia would probably faint at the thought of Will being so close.

As if reading her mind, Alex leaned back in his chair, whispering towards them. "Dude, do you think we have to beat up Mia's fiancé soon?"

"Alex, it's nine o'clock," Levi said, staring at him," I do not have the mental capacity to comprehend your thought process right now."

First period was Physics and no one seemed happy about it. Alex was seated in front of them in the back, Will and Mia beside each other in the front row. The person beside Alex had left ten minutes in the lesson to sit somewhere else, Alex his minute-long speech about how he thought his dreams were prophetic seeming to have been the last drop. Will and Mia however had been shy around each other the whole thirty minutes they had been there, Mia's ears red as she lowered her gaze when their eyes met.

"Something is obviously going on, Peterson," Alex said, tapping his finger against his temple," luckily for us my brain is a masterpiece on it's own, I have already thought up ten terrible plans to get rid of all the obstacles in Will's way."

"While that sounds like a fun way to pass time," Ella chuckled," I doubt Will would appreciate us meddling by beating up someone."

"Should we do something more grand?" Alex asked," like arrive on Mia's doorsteps dressed up as angels and sing her a serenade in Will's name?"

"How have you never taken drugs?" Levi frowned," you can not be sober with everything you say."

"I'm an enigma, I don't need drugs," Alex said," in fact, drugs need me."

"You are not an enigma," Ella said," I know every thought that crosses your mind from the moment you wake up because you have absolutely no filter."

Alex continued to talk about nothing all first period, making it pass quickly. Second period was PE, Ella's thoughts with Levi as she changed into her gym clothes. Ava applied her lipstick, glancing up at her from where she was sitting.

"How was the party?" she said," I didn't see you the whole night."

"It was..." Ella paused, not quite sure what to say. "Eventful, I guess."

"It was quite uneventful for me," Ava said, leaning back against the wall," unfortunately I didn't even succeed in finding a rich man who wanted to sponsor me for just existing."

"Why not?" Ella said," doesn't he realize you gracing him with your presence is a blessing enough on it's own?"

Ava shook her head, sighing. "Men, they never understand anything."

She was quiet for a moment, glancing up at the ceiling. The room had cleared out, leaving only the two of them behind, but though Ella knew they were late she didn't really care. The most Clarkson would do was let them run a few laps and she never had minded running.

"I heard about Levi's dad," she said, continuing on as she saw Ella's confusion," that man kept shouting about it as he was escorted out. I doubted anyone else could make sense of his rambling, but I have grown up with Levi, so I got the gist as soon as I heard it."

"I'm so glad he has such close friends," Ella said softly," I just want him to be happy. Levi deserves the world, he does."

"You make him happy," Ava noted," he's started talking more around people ever since you got in his life. That's not to say you've changed him, I know change never happens that easily, but you do make his heart lighter, in a way."

"He does the same with mine," Ella said, placing her hand on her heart absentmindedly," he's so much more than simply the things that happened to him, but I don't want to ignore that either, because to do so would be to ignore a part of him."

"You think of him so much," Ava said, catching her gaze," I'm glad he has you."

She got to her feet, hooking her arm through Ella's, her sweet perfume dancing around them.

"It'll be alright, new girl," she said," the fact that you worry about saying the wrong thing already proves you won't. Your presence alone already does a lot for Levi." With a smile she tugged her along, confident as always. "Now, let's go on to PE before your boyfriend thinks I kidnapped you."

"Wouldn't be the first time it happened to me here," Ella chuckled.

"Only in St Joseph," Ava said with a roll of her eyes.

They walked towards the field then, their class waiting in the middle of it to Ella's surprise. Clarkson was always punctual, so for him to not be here yet was a strange sight. Alex was dragging a few logs to the group with Will's help to sit on them, Levi pretending not to know them as he talked with Mia. As soon as he noticed Ella his expression softened, nodding at her and Ava.

"Isn't that your ex helping?" Ava said to Ella, gesturing at someone with a nod of her head.

She followed her gaze, not surprised to see Sam indeed jump up to help Will and Alex. At first both seemed somewhat uncertain, glancing at Levi as if to see if he was okay with it, but in response her boyfriend simply shrugged. That was enough for his friends to start chattering to Sam, her ex following along in whatever stupid plan they had concocted.

"Why am I not surprised that they get along well?" Ella said with a shake of her head.

"To be honest, Will and Alex get along well with everyone," Ava said amusedly," they could get thrown in prison and make best friends there."

"You would too, Levi," Mia offered, seeming not to want to hurt his feelings.

"No," Levi said matter-of-factly," I would get stabbed the first day and die." Mia's eyes widened, but Levi simply nodded to himself. "Thank God, because having to socialize sounds like hell."

"You would survive approximately ten minutes with that glare you have," Ella said," fifteen tops."

"I better," Levi said," if I survive longer than that and have to live together in a cell with a stranger I'll stab myself."

"Wouldn't we all," Ava said.

"We both know you would love starting a cult or something there, Nichols," Levi said.

"Survival of the smartest," she grinned.

"Guess I'll die," Mia sighed.

"Don't you have Latin and all?" Ella asked," I thought you'd be like number one in terms of grades."

"Only because I love mythology," Mia said, shy with all the attention on her," and to be honest, I'm only good with languages, I suck with everything else."

"Will is quite the good tutor," Ava said," if you have questions about something he can help, you sit beside each other in class anyway."

Mia's cheeks flared up as she took a step back, vehemently shaking her head.

"Oh no," she said," I couldn't ask that of him."

Ella placed a hand on her shoulder, sympathetically smiling at her.

"He's the only one you can ask it of," she said," I am stupid."

To be honest, she was quite average in her grades, mostly because she didn't care, and both Ava and Alex were intelligent, but she had to be Will's wingwoman somehow. Levi caught on to what she was doing then, nodding immediately.

"Yes," he said," Will can also teach you how to break stuff in case you need to, he's quite talented at it."

"It's better when you don't talk," Ava told him.

"I prefer it that way too, to be honest," Levi said.

Will, Alex and Sam had been busy making a fort as a new project, Ella wondering where the hell they were even finding these logs and if it was okay for them to be dragging it all away from it's original spot. Not like it really mattered, people around them also cheering without any care. Will's cheeks were peppered with pink in his concentration, eyes fully focused on the log as he placed it down on the triangle-shaped formation the others had made. When nothing fell he proudly looked back at his friends, Alex teaching him a victory dance.

Sam continued on to do the same, but right at that moment he caught someone's gaze over Ella's shoulder, freezing in place. The log fell down, causing the whole construction to come apart, one log rolling down past Ella, the sound of someone stopping it resounding throughout the field. Everyone stared at the person behind her in utmost shock, Ella already anticipating who it was as she slowly turned around.

Sure enough, there he stood, his foot on the log and his smile wide.

"Sebastian."