Warm winds traveled through the air, signaling the swiftly approaching Summer season. Quinn groaned in annoyance, the breeze making it infinitely more difficult to hang the dwindling stack of flyers that rested in her arms.

As the days trudged on, Siberia still failed to inform the Sullivans of her whereabouts thus resulting in Quinn's incessant worrying. Although she failed to locate the dog on her own, she hoped that the community could aid her in the quest.

Quinn bit her lip as she studied the flyer, the dog's oceanic blue eye sparkled even on the dull, white paper while the other, a warm and inviting brown, reminded the girl of the husky's sweet personality.

Once Paloma nudged her gently, Quinn tore herself from her reminiscent thoughts and looked up towards the woman.

"Almost done?"

Quinn nodded. "Almost."

They walked along the sidewalk, their eyes straining as they lost the battle against the sun's bright rays. At first, only the windchimes that whistled through the breeze, the soft melodic tune produced by the birds, and the faint giggles of children could be heard through the quiet neighborhood until Paloma disturbed the ambiance.

"Maybe Charlie's seen her around," she cautiously started. "Did you ask him about it? I mean, have you guys—"

"Don't wanna talk about it," came Quinn's simple response.

Paloma let out an exasperated sigh and rolled her eyes. "I wish for once you'd listen to me and just talk to him."

The redhead simply continued walking, her gaze remaining straight ahead, fixed on nothing in particular. At that moment, Paloma was instantly reminded of her sister's stubbornness.

"Listen—"

"We've already talked about this, Paloma. You're acting just like mom." She glanced at her sister while wearing an expression that was completely condescending. "Stop."

Paloma gritted her teeth and rolled her eyes once more, even so, she heeded her sister's request by dropping the topic. For now.

"Well, if you don't wanna talk about Charlie, then what do you wanna talk about?" she huffed.

"How about Ava?" Once the name fell from Quinn's lips and slithered into Paloma's ears, the woman sent the girl a side-eyed glare. Quinn let out a soft chuckle at this. "Not so much fun on the receiving in is it?"

The redhead stopped and nailed yet another flyer to a nearby tree. "We don't have to talk, I just wanna get these up."

"No, you know what? We can talk. As a matter of fact, we can talk about Ava. You know why?"

Quinn ambled on, ignoring the brunette's question entirely.

"Because I'm a grown ass woman who can actually talk about things without ignoring them like a child."

The teenager immediately picked up on the accusation in her sister's declaration. She scoffed her response and allowed Paloma to continue.

Paloma opened her mouth to speak, however, after a moment she realized she didn't have any words to set free. She'd be lying if she said she hadn't thought about the other woman, especially considering they saw one another on a daily basis, however, now that she was put on the spot, or put herself on the spot rather, she didn't know what to say about her and Ava but most of all, she realized there really wasn't a 'her and Ava' at all.

"Well?" Quinn coaxed.

The elder Sullivan but her lip. "Well, we haven't talked, obviously, and...it's really awkward sitting only a few feet away from her without saying anything or addressing the massive elephant in the room. Things are tense, extremely tense, and she ignores me completely, not that I've really tried speaking to her but..." she trailed off.

"Can you blame her though?" Quinn interjected. "I mean, you did drop the f-bomb on her."

Paloma grimaced as her fury induced assertion echoed in her head.

"Yeah." She rested her eyes, mentally wishing for a way to go back to revoke her wicked words and prevent herself from hurting the woman as she was certain she did. "I feel terrible about it." She tensed her jaw. "I can't believe I said that shit to her, I was mad but...I didn't mean it. Both of us said things out of anger and I hate it because we've never been cruel to each other until now."

Quinn merely nodded her head in agreement and allowed the quiet to linger between them. She was all too familiar with her regret filled past decisions clawing it's way up to the present.

"But, I don't wanna think about that right now," Paloma decided with the quick nod of her head. "It's finally the weekend." She draped her arm over the girl's shoulder, bringing her closer. "I wanna hang out, just me and you. I need to relax, unwind. I'm thinking we should order in tonight," she hummed. "What do you think?"

Quinn smiled warmly and looked up at the woman. "Chinese?"

The brunette let out a soft chuckle, "You read my mind."

Paloma mindlessly flipped through the channels, searching for a halfway decent program to watch. She gripped the glass bottle and threw her head back while wrapping her lips around it, allowing the beer to chill her insides. The alcohol settled her from within, instantly bringing a satisfied grin to her face.

"What do you want to watch?"

Once her inquiry was met with silence, she glanced towards the girl who sat Indian style on the opposite end of the couch holding a carton of noodles in one hand and a set of chopsticks in the other. Her eyes were fixed on her food while she remained in a world of her own.

The brunette was all too familiar with the look simply because it was a look that she wore many times herself. Despite the promise she made to refrain from revisiting the 'Charlie topic', she felt that the pensive expression the girl wore gave her the right to break her silence.

She planted the bottle on the coffee table and clicked the television off before turning to face her sister.

The gesture finally caught Quinn's attention. "What are you—"

"You haven't talked to him at all, have you?" Paloma interrupted.

Quinn dropped her chopsticks into the container and exhaled audibly. "I Still don't wanna—"

"Talk about it," the woman finished. "I know but frankly, I don't give care. You promised me that you'd actually start telling me stuff, remember? A promise is a promise, so I'll ask you again: have you talked to him?"

The redhead sank down further into the cushion, almost hoping the couch would swallow her whole. She bit the bullet and granted her sister a plain response, "Nope."

Paloma groaned at this. "Why not?"

"Because I..." Quinn brought the chopsticks to her lips and stuffed more noodles into her mouth. "Because."

"Come on, Quinn, grow a pair."

The teenager flinched once Paloma roughly shoved her shoulder.

"I thought you said you weren't a kid, I thought you said you were a big girl."

"I am," Quinn quietly attested, however, her words lacked conviction.

"Well, big girls aren't afraid to get shit done. You need to talk to Charlie. Have you guys spoken at all at school or through texts?"

"I already told you," Quinn grunted. "We haven't. I'm pretty sure he's avoiding me which is fine because I wouldn't know what to say to him anyway."

Paloma shifted in her seat and mimicked her sister's position as she crossed her legs and rested her hands in her lap in hopes to get a good look at the teenager. "Look, I'm gonna let you in on something that you really need to understand. It's the twenty-first century, guys are no longer the ones required to make the move. You're the one that dumped him. You hurt him so you can't expect him to come to you. You're the one that was in the wrong so you're gonna have to do the groveling."

Quinn planted her food down on the table, freeing both hands to massage her forehead. She rested her head on the back of the couch once her anxiety levels rose.

She groaned and ran her fingers through her hair before finally sitting up and motioning towards the bottle that rested on the coffee table.

A sheepish smile formed on her lips. "Can I have some?"

Paloma wore a condescending grin as she spoke, "Not a chance."

Quinn grudgingly sank back down on the couch, as a result, Paloma pressed on, "You don't need any liquid courage, alright? All the courage you need is already inside you," she chuckled. "You can do this. Go to him and apologize, clear things up, take the situation into your own hands. Don't wait around for someone else to make the move."

The ginger breathed softly through her nose, she restlessly toyed with a loose strand that protruded from her light blue jeans. "I'm not like you. You can do stuff like that but...I can't."

Quinn looked up once she felt Paloma give her knee a small squeeze.

"You're stronger than you give yourself credit for. Besides, you don't have to be like me. It was your personality that caught Charlie's eye in the first place, not mine," the brunette reminded. "Listen, I know you're scared but...it's okay to be. That's what being brave is, being terrified but going after what you want anyway. This is Charlie we're talkin' about here. You have to try something."

Quinn averted her gaze, reluctance still plastered on her face.

Paloma crossed her arms over her chest. "You didn't want me to be like mom, right? You didn't want me to coddle you or act 'unbearable' as you've so kindly put it. Well, I'm not. I'm giving you something better. A course of action, a plan."

"It doesn't matter," the girl protested. "...He'll turn me down."

The brunette pursed her lips. "And how do you know that?"

"I just do."

Paloma swallowed the urge to jump down the girl's throat once she observed the defeat apparent in her expression.

Quinn's eyes darted to her sister's after the woman continued, this time, her tone was much lower.

"I can't make this any better for you, trust me, I've tried. You know that if I could, I would but I can't because you were right. As much as I always want to, I can't come to your rescue every time something happens. You know I'm always here for you but some stuff only you can do for yourself. You don't know what's gonna happen and neither do I but you gotta try. You're not the type that doesn't at least try, that's not you. No, you are tenacious and strong and brave. I can see that, even if you can't."

The redhead's weary expression softened, the conviction Paloma's words held caused a small smile to ease its way onto Quinn's lips. Paloma returned the smile, relieved that she was finally getting through to the girl.

Before negative thoughts could cloud Quinn's judgment and diminish Paloma's heartfelt affirmation, the brunette continued in hopes to reach the teenager entirely.

"I know things have been extremely shitty these last few weeks and I know that right now it seems like it won't get any better but it will, I promise." She paused momentarily, her teeth tearing into her bottom lip as she studied her sister soundlessly. "You can't keep doing this."

Quinn furrowed her brow at Paloma's assertion.

"Being sad all the time," the woman elaborated. "I want my sister back." She lifted the girl's keys from the table and offered them up, silently pleading for her to rid them from her hands.

After a moment, to Paloma's relief, Quinn took the keys from her palm and settled them into her own, silently granting the brunette the assurance she longed for.

Before now, Quinn had never been so anxious. The nerves coursed through her veins and caused her fingers to shake violently. She gripped the red, heart-shaped box and bouquet of flowers that she held in her hands in attempts to maintain her composure.

She let out a shaky breath and closed her eyes in hopes to settle her erratic breathing. She was thankful for the night as it hid her in its shadows, shielding her from drivers as they passed by. She crept up the porch steps and tapped her knuckles against the door.

Quinn almost hoped that no one would show, that for some reason neither Arnestis would be available. If she wished hard enough, she surmised, Wilfred would still be at the diner, too swamped to close and Charlie would be right there with him dealing with the Friday night rush. At that point, she figured that any scenario would be better than the one she currently found herself in.

Despite her wishful thinking, she could hear the quiet sound of approaching footsteps as she stood on the porch.

The teenager took in a steady breath, straightened her posture, and hoped for the best.

After a moment, she felt a small gust of air whisk past her and gingerly caress her cheeks as the door opened. She put a smile on her face for the greeter, however, she had to admit, the expression wasn't exactly forced.

The second her doe brown eyes met Charlie's forest green ones, they lingered as though she feared that if she looked away, she'd be consumed entirely by the darkness of the night.

After what seemed like forever, she eventually allowed her gaze to travel down the boy's body because, for the first time in what felt like an eternity, she was able to observe him from up close.

She noticed his jawline that was somehow even sharper than before. In just a few short weeks, his structure seemed to be more chiseled and incredibly prominent, the muscles that were once toneless were now abundantly visible and well-formed.

The redhead was certain that his strong features were most likely due to many days of extensive workouts as he typically did when he found something in his life to be particularly stressful or annoying.

Quinn blinked rapidly, she was pleased that at the very least Charlie's body reaped the benefits of the painful situation they found themselves in.

Although she had seen the boy every once in a while around school, observing him up close and taking in his familiar scent was something else entirely, something she truly missed.

Charlie's deep voice tore her out of her trance, "What are you doing here?"

Quinn forced her eyes to return to his, her smile trembled ever so slightly and she let out a soft chuckle, "I—uh—I brought you something."

She held out the heart-shaped box that accompanied the bouquet of flowers. "I got you some chocolates, dark of course. I know milk chocolate gives you a headache because you think it's too sweet and um, I also got you some flowers but not just any flowers. These are called 'green eye roses'. Never heard of them? Me neither before now," she let out a laugh that was undeniably strained. "You see the green pigment in the center that's surrounded by the white petals? That's why I got 'em, they made me think of you." Her smile was painfully sweet.

"I don't want it," came his immediate response.

Quinn shut down the defeated expression that threatened to come to fruition and covered it with a sheepish smile instead. "Well, I know you're not necessarily a flower kinda guy but they match your eyes so I thought of you and I know you'll take care of them—"

"I don't...want it," Charlie enunciated.

The girl lowered her arms, allowing the items to rest at her sides. "I'm sorry."

"You're sorry?"

"...Yeah." She nodded.

Charlie scoffed, his arms crossed over his chest in the process.

"I can explain everything, okay?" Quinn assured.

"You can explain?"

"Yes, I—"

"Save it," he growled. "Keep the chocolate, the flowers, your explanation, everything. I gotta go."

His attempt to shut the door in the girl's face failed miserably once Quinn stopped him.

"Please, just hear me out," she pleaded.

"Hear you out?" Quinn instantly recoiled at his thunderous voice. "Why would I hear you out? I mean, you wouldn't hear me out before when I was begging you to listen when I was crying you didn't care. You only cared about yourself because that's who you are. You're selfish!" He tensed his jaw, allowing his words to sink in.

Quinn lowered her gaze, suddenly looking into Charlie's eyes was much too painful.

Once he finally continued, his tone was substantially lower and actually quite eerie. Despite his quiet voice, Quinn could still hear him loud and clear.

"And a bitch," he finished.

Quinn slammed her eyes shut and sighed, "You're right, I am. But I'm also really, really sorry. You can't even begin to understand how sorry I am." She held out the gifts that remained in her hands, her eyes pleading with his. "Please, just take it."

Charlie expunged a dry chuckle as he ran his long fingers through his curly hair. "I don't want your pathetic apology...or your cheap gifts. They're worthless. Just get outta here," he commanded.

Quinn bit her lip and although his words held great conviction, she couldn't bring herself to heed his request. "If you'd just listen then you'd understand everything. I know I can fix this and after I explain, if you never wanna see me again, then I understand."

"I already never wanna see you again," he growled. "Go home."

Quinn blinked rapidly and nodded her head, his words stinging just enough to get her to listen. "I really am sorry," she croaked.

With that, she turned on her heels and trudged down the porch steps. She was almost to the car when she heard the boy call out to her.

"Hey."

Quinn immediately turned around, her somber expression became replaced by one filled with great hope.

"One more thing...stop coming to my baseball games." His jaw tensed the second the command fell from his lips. "It's distracting."

And just like that, he slammed the door hard enough to shake the Earth to its core.

Quinn's smile diminished into nothingness. Suddenly, the box of chocolates and bouquet of flowers felt too heavy for her arms. She lifted the top of the metal trash can that rested on the curb and tossed the gifts inside. She let out a shaky sigh and returned to the car, turning over the ignition just as soon as she got in.

The redhead backed out of the driveway and sped down the road. She trapped her bottom lip between her teeth and leaned her head against her hand while the other gripped the steering wheel tightly.

The wind roughly blew her extensive hair back as it rushed in through the window. The red glow ahead shined from the traffic light and reflected on her glasses. Her heart twinged painfully as Charlie's conviction filled words rang through her head relentlessly.

In an instant, Quinn's melancholy expression dispersed, instead, her eyes narrowed once she looked to her left at the quickly approaching set of bright headlights that illuminated the darkness, chasing off the pitch black of the night.

She quickly slammed her foot on the brakes, the sound of the squealing tires soared through the air as they blazed against the rough road, but still, Quinn knew that it was too late.

The shattering of the windshield was almost instantaneous, the glass poured into both vehicles in the form of a million tiny pieces. Quinn hadn't anticipated the violent crash but then again, she didn't exactly stop at the red light.

The deafening sound was thunderous and completely unexpected. It nearly burst her eardrums, however, it was nothing compared to the monumental pain she endured once her left arm twisted forcefully.

And while the other vehicle was forced to a halting stop once the collision occurred, Quinn tumbled violently as the car flipped ferociously, glass piercing into the girl's fair skin and tearing into her bones while they strenuously relocated. Her head slammed violently against the steering wheel one last time, causing her to lose consciousness completely.

Once the vehicle landed in a nearby ditch, after what seemed to be an eternity, the brutal movements finally came to a halt. Only the blaring sound of the horn traveled through the air, disturbing the once peaceful night.