I keep going back to Kay's comment about loving Dylan. Am I in the same boat as her? Do we only love the idea of him, or are there true feelings in there somewhere? When I call her that night, I'm anxious to hear what she has to say. "Hey," she answers. "I can only talk for a minute. Xavier is home." "What else did you want to tell me?" I ask. "I lied earlier. I told you I didn't know what Dylan was doing with Xavier, but I kind of do. Over the break, Dylan was meeting up with Xavier almost every day and going somewhere with him. Xavier didn't tell me what they were doing, but I think he's gotten Dylan to do some of his dirty work." I hope that isn't true, but it explains Dylan's change in attitude. Maybe he is spending too much time with Xavier. "They haven't met up in a week, so I don't know what's going on," she says. "Thanks for telling me," I say. "And thanks for getting Carlos way from me." He never came across as a guy who'd push a girl to an uncomfortable situation. From what I saw of him with Casey, he seemed really normal. It must've been an act. It's disappointing to see him this way. I clearly missed the signs that Kay was able to read all along. I should've known better when he was always around somehow. "Well, if I hadn't stayed, Dylan probably would've taken care of him," she sighs. "He didn't even look at me when I left. You're the only person he was looking at." It's still weird to talk to Kay about Dylan. "Kay, I'm sorry." I don't know what I'm apologizing for. I just feel like it's my fault that they didn't work out. I wonder if Dylan would have liked her a lot more if I wasn't in the picture. "Don't apologize. I've been thinking about what you told me." "About what?" "There are more important things to worry about than Dylan." It's true. As much as I try to think about something else something other than him, it's hard. It's hard to take my own advice. "Anyway, that's what I wanted to say," she says quickly. We hang up and I stare at my ceiling. What has my life come to? The rest of the week goes by in a blur. A movie night with Lauren and Casey takes up my Wednesday night, and dinner with Casey's family takes up Thursday night. Jacob, absent from my plans, hasn't talked to me since we argued. I'm torn with him. He can be the biggest idiot on this planet, but there's something that tells me to keep him around. Not romantically. It's like a lesson. Learn to move on, but also learn to forgive. Friday morning is sluggish. I roll out of bed and go to brush my teeth. I throw on some jeans with a thick long-sleeve then brush out my hair, which I didn't do after showering last night when I got home from Casey's, resulting in a giant birds nest. I swipe on some mascara and lip gloss and walk out of my room. My aunt Jade is already gone for the day. I make myself some cereal before sitting down on the couch with a blanket. I want my Friday to go as smoothly as possible. I don't want to think about Dylan, or Kay, or Carlos or anyone else. I just want to get through the day with no worries about anything. When I step out of the apartment, I hug myself and pull my jacket tighter against my body. I adjust my scarf so no cold air gets to my neck. The snow from the night before has settled in a pretty blanket on the ground, sparkling from the little bit of sunshine peeking through the clouds. What I don't expect is to see Xavier standing by my car, yet again. And I'm not in the mood for him. "What now?" I hold up my arms. "What else could you possibly want? You have Dylan all to yourself. What else is there?" He seems amused, but there's something dark about his presence. "You play the part really well." "What part?" "The victim. Poor, helpless Lacey doesn't get the happily ever after," he says, creeping closer to me. "Boo-hoo." "What do you want?" I ask him, backing off slightly. I can't let him see that he's scaring me. I won't give him the satisfaction. "For now, you. We're taking a drive," he says. My heartbeat speeds up. "I really have to get to school," I say, pulling out my keys. "Maybe we can go another time." As I try to get into my car, he blocks me. "No, we're going now." I feel myself breathing harder as each second goes by, the scarf around my neck seems tighter against my skin. The expression on his face is serious, but I hope he'll let it go. "Either you get in my car voluntarily, or we're going to have to do this the hard way." The hard way? He sounds like a cheesy cartoon villain. "Xavier, I don't have time for this. I need to get to school." He doesn't block me as I try to open the driver's side door on my car. When I think I'm going to get away, I feel a cold hand cover my mouth. Panicking, I frantically kick my legs out, trying to pull myself away from whoever has me. Xavier only stands by, waiting. When I manage my breathing and stop thrashing around, he speaks. "We're doing this the hard way, I guess. Make one more noise, and we'll cover your head with a plastic bag," he says. "Now, give me your phone. You can thank Casey for this later." I only stare at him. What did Casey do to him? He's crazy if he thinks I'm giving my phone up.