CHAPTER 5

I woke up a little before school ended to find a glass of water next to the bed, along with my phone and book bag. A thin blanket covered me, and the door separating the room and the office was closed to give me privacy.

I picked up my phone and saw texts from Caiden, Victoria, and even Amelia.

Caiden:

Come back.

Where are you?

Alexandra, seriously, WTF happened?

I’m fucking worried.

Mother of all things large and small, where’d you go?

Why aren’t you in any of your classes?

I’m going to the hospital.

Damn it, you’re not here.

Are you still at school?

What’s your address?

I’m waiting outside the school. I’ll be here till I have football practice.

Me:

I’ll be there.

Victoria:

Alexandra

He’s a dick. Come back.

Where did you go?

At least tell me you're okay.

Me:

I’m fine. Thank you.

Amelia:

Where’d you go?

Caiden’s worried sick.

He just punched the guy.

Are you okay? You aren’t in class.

Meet me with Caiden after school, please.

Me:

I’ll be there.

The bell rang, and I headed out, thanking Mrs. Sterling. She nodded and smiled at me.

I saw Caiden pulling at his hair while Amelia tried to calm him down.

“She’s okay, Caiden,” I heard Amelia say. Caiden looked up, and our eyes locked. He ran over to me, relief washing over his face.

“Alexandra, where did you go? I was so worried. I’m so sorry. I—” Caiden started rambling, but I cut him off.

“I didn’t feel good, so I went to Mrs. Sterling. I’m fine now,” I said, giving him a fake smile.

“Amelia and Victoria told me what happened. You know that’s not true, right? "Caiden said, and I nodded, still smiling.

“Yeah. Now, let’s go. I miss Scarlet,” I said, and we walked to Caiden and Amelia’s car.

Since Caiden had to be back for football practice, he was just going to bring me with him so I could get my car. I was going to the Sterling house after practice too, so we could all do homework together.

The ride went by pretty fast, and soon we were at the shelter, causing me to smile.

“Hi, Alexandra. You brought friends? ”Precious," she asked.

“Yup, hoping to adopt a certain someone today,” I said, grinning. Precious looked surprised.

I walked over to Scarlet’s pen, and she started wagging her tail when she saw me. I bent over and picked her up, bringing her outside.

I played with her a bit while Amelia and Caiden watched from a distance so she wouldn’t get spooked.

“You guys can come in now,” I said, sitting down and placing Scarlet in my lap. She cowered into me when they came over but eventually got out of my lap and sniffed them. Progress.

“Try throwing the toy,” I said, and Amelia slowly picked it up, careful not to make any sudden movements.

She gently tossed it, and Scarlet cautiously walked over, picked it up, and brought it back to me.

“Go over there,” I said, pointing to the twins. Scarlet plopped down beside me and just stared at them.

“Try putting your hand out, palm facing her,” I said. They followed my lead, and Scarlet looked at me, then at them, then back to me before slowly walking over to sniff their hands. She sat between them, allowing them to pet her gently. A few minutes later, Amelia threw the toy again. This time, Scarlet ran to get it and brought it back to her.

I clapped lightly, happy that she was starting to trust them.

“So? "I asked, and they both nodded.

“She’s adorable, and she seems okay with us,” Caiden said.

“You’ll grow on her. I started off like you guys,” I said, smiling.

“I think this might work,” Caiden said. A huge smile spread across my face, tears brimming in my eyes.

“Thank you guys,” I said, pulling them in for a hug, making them laugh.

“She’s a sweetheart and will be in great hands during the day while you’re at school,” Amelia said. The tears started falling, and Scarlet jumped on me, making sure I was alright.

“Let’s get you out of here, Scarlet,” I whispered to her.

We filled out the adoption papers, and just like that, I was officially Scarlet’s owner.

“It’s only 3. Let’s go do homework and have you and Scarlet meet my parents,” Caiden said, grabbing my free hand and pulling me to his car.

“Mom, Dad. We have the dog—and her owner—here,” Caiden called as we entered the house. I had Scarlet tucked under one arm and Caiden’s arm around my shoulders.

“I’m coming, honey! "A voice shouted from upstairs—and I nearly dropped my phone when I saw the person.

“Alexandra? Honey, is that you? "Mrs. Sterling—aka Tara Sterling, my mom’s old best friend—said as she came down the stairs. Memories of us with Amelia at the park came flooding back.

“You guys know each other? "Caiden asked, dumbfounded. A lightbulb went off in Amelia’s head.

“That’s why you looked so familiar,” she said, smacking her forehead.

“It’s so great to see you, honey. How’s your mother? I haven’t heard from her in forever,” Tara said, running to hug me. Scarlet shrank into my side.

“Yeah, she tends to do that,” I mumbled, hugging her back.

“Is this Scarlet? "Tara asked.

“Yes, but she has a really bad history, so it’ll take time for her to warm up. She’s still not 100% comfortable with Amelia and Caiden,” I said, and Tara nodded in understanding.

“Alright, Mom. We’re going to go do homework,” Caiden said, giving me a look that clearly meant I’d need to explain everything soon.

“You should stay the night,” Tara suggested. I shrugged, secretly wishing I could.

We made our way to Caiden’s room while Amelia went into hers to take a phone call. Caiden’s room was not what I expected for a football player.

It was cream-colored with a low grey bed in the center. It was neatly kept—surprisingly neat, actually. Behind the bed was a huge action shot from one of Caiden’s football games that covered the whole wall.

“Whoa,” I breathed out as Caiden threw himself onto the bed.

“Not your average teenage football player’s room, I know. OCD will do that to you,” he chuckled, pulling out his books.

“You can say that again,” I laughed, sitting next to him and pulling out my history book. Amelia walked in, staring at me like she’d just solved a mystery.

“How the fuck did I forget that? ”Amelia," she said, wide-eyed.

“I forgot too, Amelia,” I chuckled, and Caiden stared between us, realization flashing across his face.

“No fucking way. You’re Amelia’s childhood friend. You’re the one I had a huge crush on,” Caiden said, wide-eyed.

“Wait, what? "Amelia and I gasped at the same time.

Well… shit.