“Anyone else want something from the kitch—”

“You weren’t supposed to kill him! It’s game over now!” Shouting from upstairs interrupts me.

“Hey! Boys!” Aiden calls up to the twins, but the arguing continues. Aiden leaves the room and runs up the stairs, and the shouting stops when I assume Aiden arrives.

I leave the room to grab a glass of water, still thinking about Annalisa. I’m not taking Kaitlyn’s side in this. Of course not. Annalisa didn’t deserve to get expelled, but no one should feel scared or trapped in their relationship. I know what it’s like to wake up terrified of someone hurting you every day, and I wouldn’t wish that feeling on anyone. There has to be a way to help Annalisa and Kaitlyn.

“Hey, k-bear, wait up,” Mason calls to me, and he emerges from the hallway into the kitchen.

My heart warms at his affectionate nickname. There’s a cool breeze coming in from the open sliding door and his hair ruffles a bit, giving him that messy-on-purpose hairstyle.

“Hey, want something to drink?” I open the fridge, grab a sparkling water, and hand it to him.

“Yeah, thanks. Actually, I know this probably isn’t the best time to ask with all of this going on, but we haven’t hung out in a while. You wanna do something this weekend?”

Do I want to do something with Mason? Of course I do, but I’ve been avoiding him ever since I found out about our parents. But now, looking into his chocolate-colored eyes, I know I can’t keep avoiding him. I miss my friend, and I want our relationship to go back to normal.

“Yes! Let’s do something this weekend. I’ll even let you challenge me to a mini-golf rematch since I always kick your butt.”

“Did you kick my butt? Or did I let you win since the winner treated the loser to ice cream?”

“You did not!” I love how easy it is to fall back into our normal, bantering friendship. “Next time the loser’s going to treat the winner to ice cream, and we’ll see if you really ‘lose on purpose.’”

He laughs with me, but before he can reply Annalisa pops her head in the kitchen. “Hey, that was Ray, he works at the bar my brother used to hang out at. I asked him to check the cameras that night for clues about Luke and he found something. Julian and I are going to go check it out. I’ll message the group with what I find.”

Before either one of us can reply, she’s out the door, rushing to find out what she can to free her brother.

Mason and I return to the living room, where everyone else still sits minus Annalisa, Aiden, and Julian.

“Mason and I are going mini-golfing this weekend. Anyone in?”

“Amelia.” Aiden reappears. He hovers at the threshold, close to the stairs. His face is unreadable. “Come here. Now, please.”

What? Am I in trouble? Seriously?!