There were many times in my life that I'd been taken off guard, but none of those times could compare to the time the boy I'd been admiring since the day we met in animation club placed his lips on mine and kissed me.

Westley O'Brian's lips were pressed against mine, and I was frozen in shock. My hand tingled where our fingers were still joined, and something danced in my stomach, multiplying until it traveled to my chest and my eyes were fluttering shut so I could return the kiss.

Once I did, it felt like air had been taken away from me. But I could still breathe—at least as much as I could at the moment.

West put his free hand on my waist and used it to pull me closer to himself, and the kiss deepened involuntarily as I moved forward, but neither of us broke it. My hand found his face, then slowly moved down, and I stopped it when I could feel his heart beating. It was working fast, matching the pace of mine.

After a while, I started to feel breathless, so I pulled away, but only a little bit. His lips brushed against mine slightly, and I leaned in for one last kiss. Then the realization hit me, resulting in the violent thrashing of my heart inside my chest. I let my eyes open, regretting the decision when they crashed unforgivingly with his burning ones.

It was a fatal collision, killing my words instantly and trapping me so I wouldn't be able to escape the aftermath.

First, I told him I cared about him. Then I let him kiss me like that. Where did my self-control fly off to? I hated myself a little bit, but I wasn't sure I hated him for making me fall so hard.

"West—"

The whisper of his name had barely left my lips when the front door opened. I quickly turned to it, moving away from him and the warmth his hands provided.

Kairi's eyes were unfocused as she walked in, her hair sticking to her face and neck. She didn't even bother to close the door, making her way to the couch like it was a lifeline.

I stared at her in confusion for a few unsteady heartbeats, before my mouth was moving. "Kairi." I placed a hand on her shoulder as she leaned her head back, resting it on the top of the couch, and shut her eyes. "What happened? Why are you back so early?"

"My head is killing me," she mumbled in response. "I just had to answer some checkup questions at therapy."

"How did you drive home, then?"

"I didn't."

I felt my brow crease, my flushed cheeks getting some feeling back. "Where's the car?"

As if to reply to my question, someone joined us, his eyes meeting mine before he turned to close the door. I felt West tense behind me.

"It's outside," Dray replied, walking to us, his voice deep in a way that sent chills running down my back. That feeling unfortunately replaced the one I felt from the kiss.

His eyes strayed to West, staying on him for too long, and I hated the look on his face.

"How'd you find her?"

Thankfully, my question got his eyes to leave West. "She called me. She was just a few minutes away from her therapist's office."

"Kairi," I tried again, moving closer to my sister. I took in her parted lips and unintentionally allowed a weight to settle in the bottom of my stomach. She looked like she was struggling to breathe, and I didn't understand what was going on. She was okay when she left the house.

Dray held up a hand to stop me from bothering her. "Give her some space. She'll be fine."

Even though he was being so nice and so in-control, I found it hard getting rid of the lump in my throat. His presence made me uncomfortable, and I was worried about West. If Dray didn't want to see us together, I wondered what would happen after he left here.

You'll get me in trouble.

What kind of trouble?

I watched my sister breathe for a while, trying to ignore Dray and how intimidated he made me feel. I didn't like this feeling—being scared of him. I was okay with hating him and glaring at him and wanting to hit him, but I absolutely wasn't okay with being scared of him. He was supposed to be scared of me and not the other way around. I blamed it on the way he looked at me without guilt, without remorse.

"Can you get her some water? I'll take her upstairs."

How did Kairi love that voice, and how could West stand listening to it constantly? It was raising goosebumps on my arms.

"Sure," I whispered, standing to my feet and doing as he said.

I threw West a look before making my way to the kitchen, but he didn't look at me for too long. My hands trembled strangely as I filled a glass with water, and nothing I whispered to encourage myself worked. The glass almost fell out of my hand, but I stopped it, then drew in a breath and left the kitchen.

Dray and my sister were already gone when I got to the living room, but West was still where I left him, squeezing his fingers with his shoulders stiff.

"Are you okay?" I asked before I could even think about it, and his eyes snapped to mine like he was startled.

For a moment, he just stared at me. Then he said, "Yeah. It's just," he gestured in the direction of the stairs, "him."

"Did he say anything to you?"

"Not yet," he mumbled.

I lingered by the kitchen entrance for a while, shifting my weight uncomfortably from one foot to another. "I'll be right back."

He nodded, my cue to leave.

As I made my way up the stairs, I wondered why fate was so cruel. My lips still tingled a little, the sensation not completely gone, but my stomach had tied into knots, preventing me from enjoying the feeling. West kissed me, and all I could worry about minutes later was Dray Fox.

He was gently placing my sister's head on a pillow when I walked into the room, and it was odd seeing him do something so compassionate. A part of me decided to entertain the idea of him actually caring about Kairi, but I banished the thought when I remembered how he'd kissed Gianni. He wouldn't lock lips with someone else if he really cared about my sister.

Dray was a two-faced monster, and his last name was apt.

"Here's the water," I announced, walking to Kairi's bedside table to keep the glass before it eventually slipped out of my hands.

He glanced over his shoulder at me, then focused on arranging her pillows to make her comfortable. "Thanks."

"She's my sister. You don't have to thank me for helping her."

He chuckled. "I apologize, then."

"Keep your apology to yourself as well."

He stood to his full height, then turned to face me. He was tall, he was strong, I wasn't any of those things. There was a mischievous smile playing on his lips, one so mischievous that I wanted to curl in on myself. There was no doubt that Dray was handsome—incredibly so—but being on the receiving end of a smile that was as beautiful as it was poisonous was not my favorite thing.

"Did we meet in a previous life or something?"

"God, I hope not." I had no idea how I was talking when my mind was screaming at me to run.

Dray released a laugh that would've had other girls melting into useless puddles at his feet, but only made me want to punch him in the face with a shaky fist.

"You despise me way too much for someone who knows nothing about me."

I know you're a vandal, I thought, but bit down on my lip to keep the words in. His gaze drifted down to my lips at the action, and I swear my heart stopped beating. I was going to take a long, hot bath after this was over.

"I like your fire, though," he said, meeting my eyes again, and I looked away, extremely uncomfortable.

"I should thank you for bringing her home, but my pride is too big for that." Shut up and walk away, Kimie. Shut up and walk away.

He laughed again. "You're welcome anyway." He turned back to my sister, then leaned down to press a kiss to her temple. "I'll see you later," he whispered into her ear, making my skin crawl.

Kairi hummed her approval, her eyes still closed, and I saw a corner of her lips lift in a brief smile.

"Don't bother her," Dray told me, like I didn't know how to take care of my sister.

I wanted to say something rude, but realized he helped her, regardless of what he'd done in the past and what he was currently doing behind her back. Without him, she'd be in the car somewhere, half asleep.

With that thought in mind, I rolled my eyes and turned to the door.

I felt him following closely behind me, but didn't look over my shoulder to confirm it, my focus on getting back to West before he did. When I heard Kairi's door close, I drew in a breath, too aware that we were alone in the hallway.

My walk back downstairs was uncomfortable, the back of my neck itching the whole way down. I folded my arms over my chest when I got to the stairs, as a form of support, silently praying I wouldn't trip.

West wasn't in the living room when I got there this time, and I panicked a little inside, scared that he'd left, but then I saw him in the kitchen. The breath that left my lips was quiet, but I had a feeling Dray heard it.

"Didn't know you're the kind of girl that has boys over," he mumbled as he stopped behind me, voice low, his words meant for no one but me.

I gritted my teeth, aware of his half-threatening tone, thinking about a response I could give him to make things fair. But before I could come up with anything, his hands were on my arms. My body went solid at the contact, and I felt cold even though his hands were warm, my throat going dry.

It wasn't until after he moved me away from the stairs that I realized he just wanted me out of the way. I overreacted for no reason.

Without a word or a glance in my direction, he walked past me and was out the door in no time. I took a while to regain my breath and get rid of the lump in my throat, and my eyes drifted to the front door. It was then that I noticed the smell of his cologne—something manly and strong, bound to linger minutes after he'd left.

It was making me a little dizzy, so I went to join West in the kitchen. His hands were placed on the kitchen counter, and his head was lowered like he was thinking about something.

"Hey," I said to gain his attention, and he turned his head in my direction immediately.

"Hey." His voice was barely above a whisper, getting me worried.

I felt my eyebrows pull into a frown before I made my way to him, not thinking too much about the action until I was standing right next to him. I couldn't breathe, a glance at him sending my heart into a frenzy.

"I'm a coward, right?" he suddenly asked, and my eyes roamed over his face, trying to see if he wanted a reply to that.

"No," I finally said, shaking my head to support my denial.

West gave me a lovely smile, then surprised me by taking my hand and squeezing it slightly.

"Why doesn't he want to see you with me?"

He drew a line over my thumb with his before gently letting my hand go, and I missed the warmth immediately. "I don't know. He just asked what I'm always doing with you and I couldn't tell him."

"What's his business with who you're with?"

"He wouldn't care if it was someone else. It's just you."

I watched him quietly, my heart beating irregularly in my chest. The last part of his sentence repeated itself in my head over and over again.

"Tell him the project lie or something," I finally suggested, recalling how terrified I felt when Dray placed his hands on my arms. "If he asks again—and I know he will—just lie to him."

"You can't lie to Dray, Kimie. He's a walking lie detector."

I leaned against the counter, then placed my hands behind me, not knowing what to say. It was a little funny—Dray was a lie detector, and at the same time, he was a professional liar, lying to my sister and pretending to love her.

West and I stayed in silence for the next few seconds, then he sighed and moved to stand in front of me. I didn't know where this courage was coming from, but I loved it. That fluttering filled my stomach again, and I told myself to stay still.

I looked up at him, slowly letting out a breath.

"I should go," he told me with a tender voice. "I've stayed too long and it's getting late."

I nodded in agreement, something crossing my mind instantly. I bit my tongue, wondering if I should let him know, but then he leaned his forehead against mine, and I momentarily forgot about it.

I closed my eyes, waiting for him to say something, but he remained quiet, taking my fingers and holding them like they were made of glass. I knew I was going to feel mortified later, when I lay in bed and chose to relive this moment, but for now, I was going to enjoy myself.

"I have a lot to say to you, but I don't know how to say them."

My chest warmed, and I smiled, the craziest reply popping into my head. "Why don't you show me then, instead of telling?"

His forehead moved against mine as he laughed, and I laughed, too, half-expecting him to make fun of how smooth I was. Apparently, he was full of surprises today, because he barely gave me the chance to stop laughing before his lips were on mine for the second time that day.

The kiss wasn't long this time, lasting only a few seconds, but it was perfect.

"Can't believe we did that," I confessed after our lips parted. "Twice."

He placed a kiss on my forehead and pulled away from me, urging me to open my eyes. When I looked at him and saw the innocence in his expression, I decided to tell him what I was thinking about a few seconds ago.

"West?"

"Yeah."

"Stop doing it."

He blinked at me, truly confused, then asked, "Stop doing what?"

"Vandalizing." His face fell when I said it. "You're too pure for that."

His eyes left mine and didn't find them for seconds. They focused on the floor between us instead, a few strands of his dark hair falling over them.

Eventually, he looked at me and said, "I'll see you on Monday."

I didn't stop him when he turned to leave, letting him walk away. But that didn't mean I was going to let it go. When I heard the front door close, I remembered that he forgot to send me the photo of the brooch.

I texted West on Saturday night after checking on Kairi and getting ready for bed, asking him to send me the photo. It came in just as I was drifting off to sleep.

With Monday came the reminder that finals were almost here. Kairi was feeling considerably better now, though her movements were slower than usual. It was like she had been drained of a good amount of her energy, and it hurt me to watch her get worse when I thought she was doing better. I wondered what kind of questions her therapist asked her to take her back to the first stage of her recovery. Therapy was supposed to make a person feel better.

On my way to the library during lunch, I saw Macy fiddling with the combination lock of her locker distractedly. She didn't see me, and I made sure she didn't, walking past her as quietly as I could. We hadn't spoken to each other since she came to my place on Friday with a white figure-hugging dress and a bracelet I wasn't sure I was ever going to wear. She wasn't herself, acting nervous and giving me forced smiles for some reason. I chose not to think about it.

West was with a black laptop when I spotted him, a look of concentration drawing his eyebrows together, and I walked to him with a smile on my face. I was a little too happy to know that we were finally going to be alone again, and, strangely, I wasn't as nervous as I thought I'd be.

He looked up at me when I pulled out the chair across from him, and his eyes lit up immediately. "You look happy," he pointed out, his eyes moving back to his screen.

"You know, it wouldn't kill you to say hi like a normal person." I took my seat, keeping my backpack next to my legs, before opening the zipper to pull out my laptop.

"Well, I'm not a normal person."

I shook my head in mock disapproval, my smile growing wider. "So, what are you doing? You got here before me today." I opened my laptop and caught my reflection on the black screen. I really looked happy.

"I'm done tracking the hacker. Just checking something again."

At that, I froze, my fingers hovering over my keyboard. It was a little unbelievable at first, but then I saw the serious expression that had replaced the amused one he had on earlier, and I knew it was real.

"You are? Who is it? And why didn't you text me about it?" I checked my phone to confirm that he really didn't text me, then looked back at him.

"I wanted you to get here first," he replied, watching me for a few seconds afterwards. "You're not going to like who it is."

I straightened in my seat. "Just tell me."

He closed his laptop, and I saw his shoulders deflate. Maybe in submission, maybe in disappointment. "It's Jamie."

Since this chapter has quite a good amount of smooching, I thought I'd share a fun fact about this story with you guys.

It was originally titled Smooches (before I started killing my characters). It was meant to be fun and quick, but then I started outlining, and found myself deciding that I wanted a thriller with a complicated love situation!

Which leads me to ask, what's your favorite thing about this story so far? I really wanna know!

See you all in the next update! ✨