It's settled. I need to make a deal with the devil. Getting in touch with Xavier will be a challenge. I can't get Casey or Dylan to ring him up for me, so I have to get crafty. Kay is always waiting for Dylan after school, so I have to beat him to her. I rush back to school in the middle of our last class. She isn't there when I arrive, but her red car soon pulls into the lot and parks next to Dylan's car. I take a deep breath and get out to walk towards her. Through her windshield, I can see her smirk before she opens her door. My mood takes a turn for the worst, and I can feel my attitude shifting. "Do you really miss your last class just to come see Dylan every day?" I ask her. She crosses her arms. "I have a free period." A free period? She must see the confusion on my face because she says, "I'm not stupid, Lacey. I'm actually really good at school. Hence why I have a free period." Does she want a gold star? I almost say it out loud, but if I give her too much attitude she won't give me access to Xavier. She narrows her eyes slightly. "What do you want?" "I need to talk to your brother." She lets out a laugh. "Why? Are you going to tell him you're in love with Dylan and need to be with him?" That will give her too much satisfaction. I can't do that. "I need to talk to him about Casey, actually." Her demeanor changes. "So what do you want from me?" "I just need you to tell Xavier to meet me so we can talk," I tell her. "Please." "And why should I help you?" her perfect brow arches. This is the part that's going to be extremely hard. "I won't bother you or Dylan ever again." I swallow. "You won." She doesn't look overjoyed or happy about it. She looks more puzzled than anything. "And I'm supposed to believe that?" She's testing my patience. "Kay, there are more important things in my life than a relationship with Dylan." The bell rings in the distance, which means my time is running out quickly. "Please, just tell Xavier to meet me," I plead. Kay looks lost in thought, but she nods. I'm not sure if she'll actually tell Xavier, but I can't risk Dylan seeing me with her, so I get back to my car and drive off. The next day goes by quickly and English hurts the most because I know I have to end things with Dylan. How can I end things immediately after he asked me to be his girlfriend? The roses are still in my room, reminding me of how I can't have him. As we walk out of class, he has his hand on the small of my back, almost in a comforting kind of way, like he knows what's coming. He gives me a small smile before going to his next class. I sit with Sophie and Seth in journalism so we can make executive decisions, as Mrs. Thomas puts it, about the next issue before we print it. Amidst the drama in my life, I couldn't find any inspiration for an article, so I was purely focused on editing, which gave more time for Jacob, Vicky, and Will to write articles. And they all produced really great pieces. Jacob wrote about changes to the cafeteria food for next semester. His reporting is actually pretty good, and it shocks me that he didn't write about something sports related. Will focused on what plays the theater class are putting on in the spring, and Vicky wrote a piece on confessionals from freshman as their first semester is ending soon. For a minute, it makes me feel like a proud mother watching her kids grow into prospering reporters for the school paper. They won't have journalism next semester and a pit of sadness opens inside me. Sophie, Seth, and I, being editors, will have the class again, but with a whole new group of people. We make some final edits to the paper, and send it off to the printing company just as the bell rings. Jacob walks out of the classroom at the same time as me. "Can you believe this semester is practically over?" he asks me. "Graduation is looming," I say, sighing. He pauses before asking, "Are you okay? You seemed quieter in class." I find it amusing. "You're actually asking me if I'm okay?" He only gives me a look and I stop myself from smirking. "Things could be better." "Wanna talk about it?" Explaining the whole situation will take too long, and dragging Jacob into it will only create more problems. "Not really," I say. Once we are outside, I see Lauren and Casey actually speaking to each other. Casey making amends with Lauren is a step in the right direction. "It's freezing balls out here," Jacob crosses his arms over his hoodie. When his eyes travel to Casey and Lauren, his head snaps back to me. "That's a sight to see." "It really is," I say. Casey seems to have forgiven Lauren. Then I notice Jacob's eyes keep flitting to them. "Lauren told me what happened," I admit to him. "It's whatever," he shrugs as we cross the parking lot. It's ironic. He cheats on me and I somehow convince her to break up with him when she asks for my advice. I don't know how he feels toward Lauren anymore, but part of me thinks he's over her.