After school that Monday, the boys meet up at the top of the road leading down to the dealership. In the smoldering wind, they notice Mr. Tygan walking around the melted grounds to survey the destruction.

"Hey, there's Mr. Tygan; let's go down and say hi," Josh mentions and points to his location on the lot.

"I can't, bro! I still feel too horrible about all this. I got to go; I can't do this." Justin states, fleeing the scene.

Josh watches as Justin pulls away, and once the coast is clear, he gets into his car and coasts down slowly to meet up with Mr. Tygan.

Once he comes to a complete stop, he climbs out of his car with his boss greeting him several feet away.

"Hey there, kid, come to see the damage?" Mr. Tygan yells, wearing street clothes, which is odd for Josh to see.

"Yes, sir, after seeing it on the news, I had to come to check it out, is everything ruined?"

Mr. Tygan and Josh meet in the middle of the parking lot, disclosing how bad the place is destroyed.

"Well, son, it's a total loss, to be honest. Not a single vehicle survived, I have no records, no sales, not even payroll can get done now. It's a damn mess, and it's sinking further into the red for everyone. Vehicles melted to the ground. The buildings are gone. This could net near a billion dollars in damages. Even the blacktop, as you can see, got so hot that it's deformed. Now four generations of car dealers in my family at this location end with me. There's still downtown, but it's not as successful as this location." He explains with a depression settled in his heart.

Out of nowhere, a familiar Grand Am GT pulls up when Whitney arrives to check on her father. She's shocked to see Josh, of all people, with him to come to check out what's left of the family business.

"Hi daddy, and uh hi Josh, it's been a while, how ya been?"

"Hey sweetie, and yeah, it has been a while since you two talked. I'll leave you to catch up while I wait for the insurance adjusters to arrive. Good God, I hope this isn't getting worse." He rambles, walking away.

The former lovers lock eyes. The tension from Josh is strong enough to bend steel. Whitney stands there with a glare of regret when she sees how much he's changed.

"I must say, it's nice seeing you taller. I like the new look and short hair. You look good with the blond tips, and you've been working out. Must be going through the girls like crazy now." Whitney opens the conversation.

"Thanks, yeah, and no to the going through girls. There's only been one since you, and she's a great girl too. She doesn't leave a makeup message written on my face."

Whitney drops her head in regret from that night and explains her actions and her remorseful decision.

"Listen, you know how you're tight with your boys; well, we were that way too. James had to go and cheat on Makenzie. She still loves him, by the way. Anyway, yeah, I'm still so sorry, and you are a good guy, but you know 'Girl Code' and all that."

Josh stands there huffing with his arms crossed, waiting to getaway. The silence between them sends a dagger through Whitney. She can't take her eyes off him now. She knows he's seeing someone else. She's out of the picture for a second chance.

"Well, I should go and see if my dad needs any help. It was good to see you. I mean it." Whitney tells him with a rushed hug and a peck on the cheek.

"Bye Whitney..." He whispers, rubbing where she kissed him while he makes his way back to his car to head for the house.

Once he's inside his bedroom, Josh takes out his homework, but he cannot focus on his assignment. In the back of Josh's mind wondering nonstop what karma has for him since everything crashed around him and his friends.

Lisa dismissed James earlier that day when the new kid in class takes an interest in her. Justin has become quiet and withdrawn, but one thing Josh and James are ignorant of is how he's resorted to alcohol when he comes over to deal with his guilt.

Josh's focus is further snagged when James pops through the door tossing the phone on his lap.

"Hey man, it's ya, old lady. I yelled for you three times."

The only thing James sees is Josh roll his eyes when he places the phone to his ear.

"Hello, beautiful."

"Hey, babycakes, sorry to bug you, but if you're not busy this weekend, then maybe I thought we could have a night together. My parents are going to visit my sister at school, and I got out of going with them. So, your place or mine, it'll be just us." She teases with a playful attitude to her voice.

"Yeah, sounds great. I'll come to you because I could use some time away from this place. Hey, I love you." He mentions listening to her giggle into the phone.

"I love you too, and I can't wait to see you! Hey, speaking of seeing each other, have any plans for spring break? We're going to the beach. Maybe I could convince my parents to let you tag along. Would you wanna go?"

It's a shock to Josh that blows him away.

"Uh yeah, sure, I'd love to see what it's like away from here. The only other time I got away was the summer I got to go to Japan with my martial arts instructor." Josh explains, excited.

"Yay! I'll talk to my parents when they get home and convince them that since Kevin isn't coming this year that you could stay in his room. They own a timeshare in North Carolina."

The couple continues with small talk for a while until Nikki hears her mother arrive home.

"Mom's home; I'll call you back or see you online! Love you, babycakes!" Nikki hangs up the phone before Josh can reply.

On the other hand, James is out and about putting in applications and finding something for his niece. He'll be heading to Dayton to visit for spring break. Walking into the Baby Gap, he's combing through a few selections on the markdown shelf when one of the store associates walks over to him.

"Hey there, doll, need anything or help to find anything?" The red-haired beauty asks James.

She stands there waiting for him to respond, but James is caught off guard over this young lady's instant attraction. She stands there in his eyes, being the purest woman he's met. Her deep-sea blue eyes are complimenting her fair smooth skin. Her hair barely brushes her shoulders, and her voice soft and subtle like a gentle spring breeze.

"Sir, can I help you with anything?" She repeats.

"Uh yeah, sorry, just trying to find something for my niece. She's only a few months old, and I'll be honest, I have no clue what I'm looking for." He finally spits out, nearly fumbling over his words.

"Well, I'm Scarlett, and I'm more than happy to give you a hand. You said your niece, well, how about this?"

Scarlett picks up a pale pink shirt that says, 'Lil Angel in Training,' and James can't think of anything else, so he nods at her selection.

"Can I help you with anything else? Bibs? Socks? Anything?"

James takes it upon himself to finally crack free from his tattered post-Makenzie era shell to ask her for a phone number.

"I could use one more thing if it's available."

"Sure, name it!"

"How about a phone number so when she sees it, I can tell ya how much she adores it." He manages to say without a slip-up.

Scarlett begins to blush, but the smile on her face says it all when she walks him up to the checkout counter. From behind the counter, she breaks the rule not to mingle with any customers. She takes a chance to give James her contact information.

"That'll be $12.87, and I'll place in your bag a special coupon just in case you want to come back for anything else." She says with a wink and a smile, with James picking up the hint.

"Yeah, that'll be great, and I'll be sure to use it soon. Thanks so much for your help!" He replies, taking the bag from her grip, leaving the store with a permanent smile seared to his face.

For the most part, things appear to be on an uptick for the boys. James is quickly shedding his old ways. He's become charming, and now he understands how Josh feels about Nikki.

Josh and Nikki prepare for their trip with her parents. He is driving his car, following them down to the beach house located along the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

That leaves Justin feeling better about being free from the underground world of the chop-shop. He's finding it hard to sleep some nights. The images of guns pointed in his face haunt him, along with the sight of Bobby's trailer burning to the ground. He writes down how he feels and remembers and burns the paper to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. It's a slow process, but he's pulling himself from it. Plus, the addition of picking up a date one night while at the skating rink helps move his mind from overthinking the past.

The night before Josh gets set to leave for Teays Valley to head for the beach, the boys have a small going away party. James is hitting the sauce light that night. Justin is drinking enough to make up for both boys, not into the spirit of things.

"Here's to us the troublesome trio, a bunch of misfits no one would think would become best friends!" Justin slurs with a double shot of bourbon.

"Easy bub, it's only a week we're going to be gone, and then it's back to the three amigos." Josh implies smacking Justin on the shoulder. "Besides, you got that new girl, what's her name again, uh Hilary, right."

Justin belches before he answers.

"Yup... and she's a sassy little thing too. She can drink me under the table, and here's the thing, she's a year younger than me!"

James waves the nasty combination of booze and tacos away from his nose. Josh can't stop laughing, but Justin takes the bottle and stumbles through the house, singing, and dancing.

"Man, he's beyond messed up, like big-time dawg. You ever remember him being like this?" James whispers, with some concern over Justin's behavior.

"My guess, he's not looking forward to being stuck here alone. I mean, I'm heading for the beach, and you're heading out Sunday to your sisters' place. First time in years, we've all gone to do our own things, you know."

Justin continues to dance up and down the hall for fifteen minutes before returning to the living room without the bottle of liquor.

"You know what this next week's going to prove? That we aren't as good friends as we say we are. You know that we all now have girlfriends, and we're here less, and soon we'll be seniors and all that stuff. Life's pulling us apart, and it sucks. You're both going to go to college and get out of here. At the same time, I'll still be here a townee, a local loser, maybe a local cop. Yup, that's me, a little local cop busting the bad guys!" Justin rants some of his pent-up frustrations out.

"Now hold on just a damn minute! We're boys, and we're always going to be boys no matter what! Even when we leave, it's not like you couldn't come with us and build a new life that way. You're not going to be stuck here, bub. I won't let that happen. The three of us, we're better than this shithole town." Josh reminds Justin shaking him.

The sudden violent shaking brings a reaction from Justin. He stumbles into the kitchen and bumps into the stove before he leaps for the sink. All the alcohol he ingested earlier decides to make a return trip leaving Justin stuck over the sink, puking it up with force.

Josh and James stand there listening for a minute before James asks Josh for a small favor.

"Hey man, care if I borrow one of your Old Navy polo's? I'm taking Scarlett to the movies tomorrow afternoon. I want to make an excellent connection, you know. She's always seen me in my baggy clothes."

"Yeah, go-ahead, bub, I don't mind at all. I have one that's getting a little too snug for me anyway. You can have it. It's my dark blue one, should fit you pretty well since you're skinnier than I am."

James wastes no time going back to find the shirt and tosses it in his bedroom.

"Cool dawg, thanks! Hey, shouldn't you get moving? Are they going to be heading out soon, right? Hell, it's almost midnight, and you said they're driving tonight to avoid the traffic. You best get your ass moving, dawg!" James reminds Josh seconds before the clock chimes midnight, and he's virtually running late.

"Damn! Yeah, I'll see you when I get back and have fun in Dayton! See ya, Justin bub, feel better!"

Josh flies out the door leaving Justin and James there to finish up the party. Justin's stomach settled enough to where he returns, planting himself on the couch and moans in misery.

James goes to the closet down the hallway to get Justin a blanket. He tosses it over to him and heads off to bed himself. Justin, though, seems like he was off to another restless night, but something changes in him that night where he finally figures out a way to find peace.

He's gone before James even comes from his bedroom late the next morning. Not thinking anything of Justin's disappearance, James heads back to Josh's room to steal a pair of Paco brand jeans for his date with Scarlett.

All three of them are vastly unaware of the events the next week is about to unveil. Karma is about to shake things up after their next hoorah.