The day went by in a blink of an eye. Before I knew it, I was trudging out of my seventh period.

On the way to the entrance, where it was assumed I was meeting Ben, I called Jaz.

She picked up on the second ring. "Bella, what a pleasant surprise to be graced with your phone call."

I rolled my eyes even though she couldn't see me. "Very funny, Jaz. I need you to do me a favor."

"Always babe! What's up?"

Ah, Jaz, compliant as ever.

"I'm gonna share my location with you. Now, if I don't show up to school tomorrow, I need you to call the police." I kept my voice as normal as possible. Knowing Jaz, she'd think this is a joke.

She awkwardly laughed on the other line. "Uh Bellz, you're scaring me."

"The odds are, I'll be totally fine, but just in case. Can I trust you to do this?" Her silence was portraying her hesitation. "Okay, don't call the police, but call Reece. He'll know what to do."

"I'm all for your secret adventures, but you're seriously freaking me out. What's going on?"

I nervously bit my cheek. The whole reason I chose to tell Jaz was because she never asked questions. She knew little to none about Dean's past. Explaining this would wreak havoc. I could only imagine how pissed she'd be with the fact that I hid so much from her.

So I blurted out the next best thing. "I'm going on a blind date."

"Huh?" The shock was evident in her voice. After a pause, she finally shrieked. I pulled my phone away from my ear to save my hearing. "Bella! A date? Are you crazy?"

"Jaz, shut up!" I groaned. Even though we weren't near each other, I was nervous someone would overhear her.

"Girl! What the hell– hold on." Her voice got distant. "Yes. She is. Why?"

I furrowed my brows in confusion before realizing she was talking to someone else. "Jaz... who's there with you?"

"Huh? Oh! No one, don't worry about it," she rushed out. "Listen, I'll do it, but I don't support you moving on so fast."

I ignored her disapproval and grinned. I knew I could trust her. "Thank you, thank you! But Jaz, don't tell anyone, okay?"

"Why?" she skeptically asked. I could just imagine her brows rising up right now.

I bit my lip as I saw Ben at the end of the hall. He was leaning against the wall and repeatedly checking his watch. He hadn't seen me yet.

"Oh, you know, just in case it doesn't work out. It's not a big deal. I don't wanna get anyone's hopes up," I lied. Man, was I good at this! I steadily approached Ben, whose gray eyes met mine. "Okay Jaz, I've gotta go. Love you, bye!"

I hung up and stood in front of Ben. "Who was that?"

"None of your business," I said flatly. "Alright, now what's the deal?"

"Since this Dean guy's a force to be reckoned with, I think it'd be best to go to the one place where he'd never find us." He pushed himself off the wall and began walking to the lot.

I quickly caught up with him. "Okay. Uh, where's this?"

He stopped walking, making me bump into his back. I rubbed my sore nose which was now throbbing. Man, his back was hard!

He turned around and gave me a scowl before gesturing to something in front of him. Rolling my eyes, I pushed him to the side so he wasn't blocking my way. He let out a soft oof but I was too distracted by the sight in front of me.

Now, I didn't know much about cars, but I did know Lamborghinis were expensive.

He led us to a gorgeous silver car. The tires and sides were lined by a sleek red color. From the looks of it, the interior seemed to be red too. The windows were heavily tinted to the point where I wasn't even sure it was legal. The tires were so low that it looked like the car was hovering.

My eyes flickered to the back and read aloud the name. "Veneno?"

Ben proudly nodded and it was the first time I've seen a positive emotion on his face. "Yup." He gently patted the roof of his car. "Get in."

As tempting as that was, no.

"What about my car?" I asked, instead of voicing my fears about him kidnapping me. He promised he wouldn't kill me, but abduction wasn't off the table.

He rolled his eyes and contemplated a plan. "I suppose I can drive and you'll follow."

I was half tempted to blow him off right then and there. He wasn't even telling me where we were going. But I needed this just as much as him.

Even though his suggestion made sense, I longingly eyed his car. It looked pretty dope. I wanted to sit in it.

"Relax Wilks, I'll take you for a spin another time."

I bit my lip and nodded. "I'll just follow you out then?"

"Yeah, that's what I just said," he remarked, annoyance dripping in his voice.

Okay then.

I narrowed my eyes at him then made my way to my own car. I could hear his engine roar to life and a freaking whimper left my lips. A whimper! Did I really wanna sit in that car so badly?

Now that I thought about it, I'd never seen his car before. Maybe that was because I never paid attention. Why would I? My spot was right in the front, so I never had to walk past the other cars.

As soon as I got into my car, I pulled out my phone and shared my location with Jaz. Then I put his car's name into google. My jaw dropped as the results popped up. A Lamborghini Veneno costs four million dollars. MILLION! Who the hell had that much money to drop on a car? Not to mention, there were only three in the whole world!

Just how rich was Ben?

I let out a low whistle and started my car. A honk made me jump and I narrowed my eyes, looking in my rearview mirror. Ben's car was idling behind me.

Rolling my eyes, I put my car in reverse. He took the hint and drove forward so I wouldn't hit him.

And then we were off.

At first, I struggled to keep up with his speed. My Jeep Wrangler was no match for his freaking Lamborghini. It was made for off-roading, not racing.

Eventually, he realized that he couldn't drive like a maniac and expect me to keep track so he slowed down. We were still going well above the speed limit, but he wasn't breaking 100 mph anymore.

Maybe it was good I didn't get in the car with him.

As he led me further away from civilization, I frowned. If he wasn't taking me to a public place, then where were we going?

Oh my god, was he really going to kidnap me?

I sighed and prayed for the best as I followed him. We eventually came to a pause and a very audible gasp escaped my lips.

We were at Ben's house...

He rolled down his window and entered some type of passcode on the gate before it slowly opened. I tailed him, scared of the gate closing on my car, which I doubt would really happen.

We drove up a long driveway until a big circle path came into view, with a fountain in the middle. He turned off his car and I followed suit.

In front of me stood the biggest house I've ever seen. Hell, it made my house seem like a freaking trailer park, and that was saying something!

The walls were a beautiful eggshell color, with a brick roof. What really caught my attention was the fact that the house surrounded us on all three sides. And the windows... my god! From what I could see, there were like a million windows just facing the driveway!

I'd never seen a mansion like this.

"You're drooling," Ben called from somewhere.

I pulled my eyes away from the elegant exterior and scowled at Ben, who was already standing at his front door. Knowing him, he'd leave without me, so I jogged up to meet him. He pressed on a fancy-ass doorbell. Like I mean fancy. It was gold and had intricate designs throughout the plate.

I was kinda scared to ask if it was real gold.

The french doors swung open to reveal a stalky woman with short, curly hair. I didn't even question if she was Ben's mom. They looked way too different to be related.

"Maria," he curtly nodded and walked past her like it was nothing.

Figures he didn't have manners.

Her surprised eyes met mine and she widened the door for me to get past. I smiled as I did, whispering a soft, "Thank you."

As soon as I entered, my gaze transfixed on the area. It was an open hall, supported by brownish marble pillars. The floor matched. A set of winding stairs were to the right and a huge window was straight ahead. I could see designer furniture poking out.

Fingers touched the bottom of my chin and practically forced my mouth shut. I turned a slight shade of red as I was met with Ben's cocky smile.

I didn't know why I was surprised. He drove a four million dollar car and dressed like he owned every designer store in the country.

But still... I never thought of him to be this rich!

I turned to face the lady from the door and extended my hand. "I'm sorry for my rudeness! I'm Bella."

She eyed my hand with surprise before enveloping it in her meaty one. "Maria. I'm the head housekeeper."

Head? Did that mean there were more?

My face must've shown my shock because she broke out into an amused grin. "I've never seen Mr. Ben bring company around here before." She had a slight Hispanic accent, but it wasn't strong enough for me to not understand.

I glanced at Ben, who had blush dusted across his face. I wasn't sure if I should've been surprised or not. He acted really anti-social, but also super narcissistic. There were bound to be girls brought here, right? Friends even?

He noticed my stare and immediately scowled. I couldn't help but roll my eyes, then turned back to Maria. "Well, it was lovely to meet you."

"I hope to see more of you around!" she chirped, giving Ben a stern look. "Do you guys need anything?"

"No."

So rude! I flashed Maria an extra sweet smile to cover up for Ben's bluntness. "No, thank you!"

"Aye Bella, I already like you," she said quietly so only us two could hear.

Getting her approval made my heart swell in weird ways. Why did I even care?

"Okay, I must get going. Mr. Ben, your dinner will be ready soon. Bella, will you be joining us?"

I awkwardly shifted on my feet. Was I? Were we going to be here for long?

"No," I finally spit out. Her face fell a little. "I'll need to be home for dinner. Maybe next time." Her eyes lit up at the idea of having a 'next time', which made me regret saying it like that. She smiled and nodded, leaving us alone in this huge hall.

As much as I did want to stay for dinner, I needed to get home. My parents were leaving and Justin wouldn't be able to survive by himself. Not to mention I didn't wanna intrude on Ben's life. I doubt he wanted me there in the first place.

I turned around to face Ben, but he wasn't there anymore.

"Over here, Wilks," his voice echoed. I followed it to see him halfway up the stairs. Once his eyes met mine, he continued his trek upward.

Exasperated, I struggled to catch up with him. His long legs seriously left me at a disadvantage.

"God, hold on!" I panted, finally reaching the top. All annoyance stopped as I saw the sight. We were in yet another open hallway. There was a seating area with a TV and fireplace. The window showcased a beautiful balcony that overlooked the entirety of the backyard, which included a lake. There were multiple hallways leading to different parts of the house.

I itched to explore the house in its entirety.

When I looked around, Ben was nowhere to be seen, again. Rolling my eyes, I walked up to the window. I wasn't about to roam the house alone and risk meeting his family members without warning – or worse, walk in on something I wasn't supposed to see.

The huge window, much like the one downstairs, was arch-shaped. At the very side was a door that led to the balcony. As I approached closer, I saw the beautiful view.

Not only was there a huge lake in the backyard – with a dock, mind you – but there was a beautiful pool with the clearest water I'd ever seen. There were multiple water fountains scattered throughout. Past the pool, there was a stretch of grass before the lake. From here, I could see multiple statues littered around. They were all of people, resembling the Greek kind you'd see in a museum. There was also a stone gazebo on one end. From here I could see some seating. I could only imagine how peaceful it would be to see the sunrise from there.

But what really caught my eye was another house in the backyard. It was probably the size of a normal one-story house. Was it the pool house? Maybe a guest house?

Imagine having a separate house of guests. That screams wealthy.

"Whatcha looking at?"

I jumped and turned to glare at Ben. "Jesus, do you always sneak up on people?"

He smirked and came closer until he was standing directly behind me. His eyes trained on his impressive backyard and I found myself doing the same.

"Your house is amazing. You could have the best parties here."

He scoffed and walked away, plopping down on one of the leather couches. I followed and gently sat on the one next to him. I felt a little awkward. Knowing him, this couch probably costs more than a limb.

"Is that all you care about? Parties?"

I was taken aback by his question. "No."

He turned to me with a mocking smile. He spread his arms over the back of the couch and crossed his leg, bouncing his leather shoe up and down. "Tell me then, what else do you care about? Because frankly, you always seem to be at one."

"I could say the same about you," I mumbled before mimicking his smile. "I care about a lot of things. My friends, family, dog–"

He scoffed, dropping the smile. "Figures, you're superficial."

My jaw dropped. "Excuse me? I'm superficial? There are only three Venenos in the world and you – a seventeen-year-old – happen to own one. Your only wear name-brand shit and you have a freaking maid who opens your front door instead of using a damn key like a normal person! And you have the audacity to call me superficial?"

His eyes sparkled with an unknown emotion as he scanned my face. Then he leaned forward, making me scoot backward in my seat. "The car was a gift. I have the money so why wouldn't I buy my money's worth. And if Maria didn't open the door for me, she'd be out of a job."

I narrowed my eyes regardless of how uncomfortable his staring made me felt. "That doesn't make you any better."

His jaw clenched and I knew I hit a nerve. He leaned back stiffly. "Look, this is all my dad's money, not mine. It's just the way life is."

Right. Life. What a shitty excuse. There were people out there dying from poverty and starvation but he just had to have his Gucci slides.

I mean, my family was well off, but we weren't millionaires like him. Even then, my parents' did good stuff, like hosting charity galas and pro-bono work. We always tried to give back to the community in any way we could.

But Ben? Hell, his house could probably shelter the homeless population in our town. He could donate a million dollars and it wouldn't even dent his bank account.

I took a deep breath. Getting pissed at him right now would get us nowhere.

He stood up from his spot and approached a bar from across the hall. I hadn't spotted that earlier.

He took out two glasses and a glass pitcher with a dark liquid. I wasn't stupid enough to know it wasn't alcohol. But as he poured the liquid, I realized it was the bottle that was dark, not the alcohol.

He balanced both the cups in one hand and the bottle in the other. He set it on the coffee table and handed me one of the cups. I immediately sniffled the clear liquid.

"Don Julio Tequilla," he said, taking a seat on his couch. I stared at him blankly. I watched him pour it, so I knew it wasn't drugged. But was drinking a good idea? Especially at Ben's house? He noticed my blank stare and sighed. "Wilks, it's a $150 bottle. Don't waste it."

I couldn't help but scrunch my face. Who spent that much money on one bottle? He could've brought any tequila and I wouldn't have known the difference.

"You're infuriating," he grumbled before coming over and grabbing the glass from my hands. He chugged it in one sip, then wiped his mouth with the back of his mouth.

Well then, I guess that settled it.

Once he was comfortably sitting in his spot with a refilled glass, he stared at me expectantly. All I could do was stare at the cup in his hands. This was his third glass in the span of two minutes. I'd never witnessed him drink this much, let alone this quickly.

Didn't he say he was an angry drunk?

"So Wilks, are you gonna stare at me all day or actually talk?"

I snapped out of my reverie and stared at his face. His eyes were a light shade of gray and his face was relaxed. He definitely didn't seem angry, which was good.

"Um, what do you wanna know?"

He seemed surprised by my question. He chugged his third cup and put the glass down, not going to refill it – thank god. "Are you letting me ask you anything?"

Now I was taken aback. I had to play it cool before I messed everything up. "I'm an open book, Stark. Ask away."

He was pleased by my answer. "Alright."

"But," I interrupted, "you have to answer mine too."

A scowl overtook his face again, but he nodded. "Sounds fair. I'll start." A thoughtful look took over his features. "How long have you lived here?"

I wondered why he didn't get straight into the Dean related questions, but I was a little thankful.

"Since Elementary school," I answered, then a thought came to me. "Wait, hold on, I have a question. You moved here this year, right? Then how come you already have a house here?"

Ben bitterly laughed and poured himself another glass. He took a long sip before answering. "My dad's always lived here. I lived here too at some point, but I moved when I was younger."

"Why?"

For a second, I thought he wouldn't answer.

He stared at the bottle of alcohol on the table, lost in thought. "My mom died when I was young. I moved to Chicago to attend one of the best private schools in the country."

My eyes widened. "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

He gave me a bewildered look. "Why wouldn't you ask? I gave you some ominous answer, I wasn't expecting you to just sit with that information."

If I didn't look absolutely shocked before, I sure did now. How was it so easy for him to reveal stuff like this? Was it supposed to be? Were people actually open about their haunting pasts?

Not everyone's like Dean.

He took a shaky breath and another long sip of the alcohol. He didn't flinch once.

"You keep talking about your dad. Is he here?"

Anger sparked in his hardened eyes and before I knew it, the glass that was once in his hand was across the room, shattered on the floor.

His bloodshot eyes turned to me and softened as they took in my horrified expression. Then he let out a humorless laugh. "You see this big house?" His hands swept the air in front of him. "It sucks ass."

"Don't say that," I said softly.

He ignored me. "What's a big house when there's no one home? All I have is Maria. She's the only fucking person that cares about me. My father? He's never here. Hell, he's hardly in the country." His eyes met mine, but now they seemed hollow. Sad even. He plopped back down on the couch and ran a hand through his hair. "It's so fucking lonely."

Never in a million years did I ever think I'd agree with Ben Stark. We had something in common, as much as I didn't want to admit it.

The stupid, compassionate side of me got up and sat next to him without hesitation. "I know exactly how it feels," I whispered, wrapping my arm around his shoulder.

He shrugged off my arm and looked at me with such intense emotion. I felt hurt by the rejection but kept it to myself.

"You? Ms. Perfect?"

I rolled my eyes and avoided his gaze. "I'm anything but."

He let out another humorless laugh. "Sometimes I wonder how someone can be that perfect. You get good grades, have a perfect family, perfect friends, a fucking dog for christ's sake. What is it? A German Shepard?"

"Golden retriever," I sheepishly admitted. "And I'm really not."

"Fine then, humor me. Your pencil eraser. When was the last time you swapped it?" He was referring to my mechanical pencil that had erasers that could be changed when it got too low.

I thought back to my pencil. "I don't think I've ever–"

"And how long have you had this specific pencil?"

I frowned, wondering what the hell a pencil had to do with anything. "Since last year."

"Do you see my point?"

I looked in his wild eyes with confusion. "No?"

He groaned in his hands before angling his body toward me. "You hardly ever use your eraser! You don't erase! You don't make mistakes."

My mouth opened, then clamped shut. I had no idea how to respond to that. Not erasing on paper was hardly proof of someone's capability.

"I think you've had too much to drink," I replied. He seemed pretty angry right now, even though he wasn't drunk.

When he didn't speak, I sighed. There wasn't any harm in confiding in him, right?

"I do understand what you're saying. I may be rich – not as much as you, obviously – but that doesn't mean I have issues. My life's far from perfect."

He cradled his own head and took deep breaths. When his hard eyes met mine, I flinched, thinking he was going to lash out at me. Instead, he whispered, "I know."

My brows furrowed as I put some distance between us. He fully sat up, looking seemingly normal now. He didn't seem extra angry, just the normal amount he was every day.

"W-what do you mean?"

What if he knew me? What if he knew everything about me? I'm sure he could've background checked me. Did ex-boyfriends even show up on those?

My heart pounded against my rib cage as I cautiously eyed him. His cheeks tinted the slightest shade of pink and he averted his gaze, focusing on his entwined hands in his lap. "You seem troubled."

"I'm sorry, what?"

He panicked as he took in my offended expression. "No! I didn't mean it like that! It's just..."

"Just say it, Stark," I snapped impatiently.

He averted his gaze once again. "Ever since I met you, you've been moody. You've had good days, which shows that you're not always like this. But you've been extra cranky for a while."

My jaw ticked. "You think my life is hard because I'm moody?" I wasn't sure why, but his assumptions were starting to piss me off, reminding me of everything I hated about him.

He thought he knew everyone better than themselves. He was egotistical, an asshole, and downright rude.

He shot me an incredulous look. "You just said your life is far from perfect!"

"Just because I said it didn't mean I meant it."

I had no idea what game I was playing, but I knew I was seconds away from snapping. Where'd this sudden emotion come from? I was totally fine in confiding in him moments ago.

Taking deep breaths, I ran a hand through my hair. With the number of times I've done this tonight, I'm sure my hair looked like a rat's nest. "Listen, do you wanna talk about Dean or not?"

He warily eyed me, then gulped and nodded.

"I don't get why you're so obsessed with him anyway..." I trailed, hoping he'd answer. When he didn't, I sighed and continued. "What do you want to know?"

"The rumors. What were they about?"

"Oh, plenty. I mean, there were the obvious ones about him and Taylor doing it everywhere humanely possible," I lied, getting a bad taste in my mouth. I didn't even wanna think about the brief time they spent together. "And then there's the rumor about him cheating on her with a bunch of other girls."

He rolled his eyes and leaned back. "From what you're telling me, the bastard's smug about his... sexual habits. Why would he be mad that people are talking about that?"

I pursed my lips and focused on my lap. "Well, he wouldn't be mad about those rumors. Word spread about other...stuff."

He eagerly leaned forward. "What stuff?"

"Just that he was in a... gang," I whispered the last word like it was taboo. "I thought it was crazy because like... what teenager is in a gang, right?"

I glanced over to see him stiffen.

"Anyway, it's ridiculous. But my doubts started diminishing when I've heard stuff about him beating up random kids for no reason!" Drew's face flashed in my mind, and how Dean punched him once, long ago. "But, you know, they are rumors. I'm not really sure if they're true," I played it off, making sure he thought I was clueless.

He shook his head and looked at me like I was an innocent puppy. "Oh Bella, if you only knew."

I cocked my head. "What do you mean?"

He shook his head, his dirty blond hair covering his forehead. "Don't worry about it." Then mischief twinkled in his eyes. "So, this Taylor girl, she must be pretty important to him."

I eagerly nodded, even though the thought made me sick. "Oh yeah. They're pretty on and off, but they always end up together. I think the only reason they're not committed is because of Dean's need to be a manwhore." Okay, maybe I was a little harsh with that one.

"Huh, that's interesting."

I nodded, even though unease set in my stomach. This meeting benefitted him greatly, but so far I had nothing.

I had to get over my pride and open up to him, even if it was a little. He just needed to feel trusted around me.

"Look, I'm sorry for lashing out at you earlier," I apologetically smiled. "I just... my problems seem minuscule to yours."

Ben looked utterly relaxed now, a stark contrast to his angry outburst earlier. I could hardly believe this was the same guy.

His eyes scanned my face again. "Hit me."

I scanned through my numerous issues and thought of the most pathetic one. I wanted to be vulnerable to him, but not too vulnerable. After all, it was me trying to ruin his life. He couldn't flip this information on me.

So, I chose the pettiest issue I had to deal with right now.

"You're going to think it's stupid," I sighed. "But, I have these two friends. They've been messing around on the down-low. But the issue is, her ex is the guy's best friend. And all of them are my friends." He looked utterly confused, but I kept going. "I guess what I'm trying to say is... my friends are all expecting me to keep their secrets and it's overwhelming. Like, I'm only one person! And the guilt... my God it's overwhelming."

That was completely true. My heart hurt when I thought about a hurt Emma, regretful Will, and oblivious Dylan. When did everything become so fucked up with them?

And they made it seem like Jaz was normal.

"It's not stupid," he whispered so softly, it shocked me how nice he was being at that moment. His steel eyes were soft. "I bet it's scary to be holding so many secrets."

"And it kills me to not tell everyone, but they're not mine to share. I just wish they all manned up and confessed before everything was more messed up," I said, zoning out again. "The guilt is the worst. Spending time with everyone at once nearly gives me a panic attack because I'm afraid to blurt something out."

He thoughtfully tapped his chin. "I think... you need to threaten your friends."

"Come again?"

"Threaten them," he repeated. "Tell them that if they don't fess up soon, then you'll do it for them."

I genuinely mulled over his advice. "That might work."

"It would."

I looked at him with sympathy. I wanted to wrap my arm around him once again, but feared he'd only reject my touch. "Listen, I'm really sorry about your mom. And your situation. It's shitty."

Trust me, I knew. And I didn't even have a Maria to take care of me.

He pursed his lips and looked down. "Thanks."

I patted his back and attempted to lighten the conversation. "I still think you're an asshole though."

"And you're still annoying," he teased, but his voice wavered slightly.

Footsteps could be heard and seconds later, Maria came up with a broom and dustpan. "Mr. Ben, your dinner is ready," she smiled and began cleaning the broken glass. I immediately wanted to help her, but her words distracted me.

With widened eyes, I checked my phone. Crap! Justin was probably home already, not to mention starving.

"Crap, I have to go!" I worriedly jumped up.

Ben stood up with me. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, fine," I said, rushing toward the stairs.

"Jesus Cinderalla, leaving the ball so soon?" he joked, following closely behind. Thank god we only went up the stairs. I surely would've gotten lost if we wandered into any of the hallways.

"Funny," I said as I reached the front door.

"I know!" He grinned.

Right, he didn't understand sarcasm.

I paused my frantic rush and turned to him. With a sincere smile, I said, "Hey, thanks for confiding in me a little. If you ever wanna talk..."

He scoffed like I said the stupidest thing ever. "Confiding? That was information you could've found on Google."

He was downplaying it, but I knew confiding when I heard it. Google wouldn't have screamed about how lonely Ben's life was.

"Mhm, okay," I sarcastically replied. "Anyway, see you later Stark. I'm expecting to get a ride in your sweet whip one day."

"And you said I'm the materialistic one," he scoffed. "See ya, Wilks." He then proceeded to mumble something incoherently.

I raised a brow. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

He gave me an exasperated look, but the pink on his cheeks betrayed any hard emotion he had. "I said, thanks for coming."

I didn't have much of a choice.

I nodded in acknowledgment and skipped down the steps, heading straight to my Jeep. After I sat in the driver's seat, I opened my window to wave goodbye, only to find Ben gone.

I ignored the disappointment and drove away. The gates opened for me as I approached them. I took one last look at the beautiful mansion in the rearview mirror before leaving the property.

Today was exhausting. I got whiplash from both of our mood swings.

It annoyed me that Ben thought I was perfect, but it annoyed me even more when he urged me to talk about my problems. Who did he think he was, my therapist? If I didn't talk about it with my closest friends, then why would I talk about it with him?

I learned something about Ben Stark today. He opened up to me, whether he was admitting it or not. And it hurt to see we had something in common.

How could I have anything in common with that heartless jerk?

Hopefully, I opened the gateway for him to confide in me more often. Not only did I need for him to tell me his plans about Dean, but I needed to knock him off his high horse. The plan was to get so close to him and then absolutely crush him.

And how was I going to do that? I had no idea.