"It's going to be the absolute worst," I tell Lyle on our way home, after school.

"What is?"

"Literature mid-terms," I complete, shoving my hands in my pockets. Maple Heights might not be a windy coastal city, but being in the middle of nowhere grants you no shielding from the chilly winds of June, either.

"Ah, Zeus is gonna have our asses on a plate," Lyle says. He started calling Mr. Sunderland "Zeus", just like I do. "Math will be no joke, either."

"Math is okay. I can give you a hand with that."

"How come you're so good with that dung, anyway?"

"It is what it is, Lyle," I reply, now trying to burrow my neck between my shoulders. "The good thing about math is there's only one right answer."

"And infinite wrong ones..."

"Once you learn the procedures, the rest is easy."

"I heard that!" A female voice behind us says, and Lyle and I turn around. It's Amanda Riggs. As usual, she's followed by Corrine Bates, her ever-present groupie. "How much would you charge us for a few lessons?"

I glance at Lyle for a nano-second before replying. This is probably a gift from the heavens for me to make fun of him, and one I'm not letting pass by. "We can meet somewhere to study." And then I add, "Free of charge."

"Then it's settled," she replies quickly. "Can we meet at my house at about 3?"

"It would be uncomfortable at your house, Amanda," I say. "Your brother isn't very fond of me being around you."

"Who? Rude? Pfffft!" she says, budging her way between Lyle and me. "He's not my dad. He can't tell me who I can hang with and who I cannot."

"Still, I think meeting at Aloha would be better. We can have something to eat while we're at it."

"Sweet! 3 p.m., then? It's a date!" she decides, pretty much on her own, and pulls on Corrine's arm, dashing ahead of us and disappearing around the corner.

"Okay, what the hell was that?!" Lyle asks once the girls are out of sight.

"Uh, if this isn't a joke? I got you in a double-date with Amanda Riggs."

"No, no. Don't be dense," he replies, frowning at me. "You know well enough she's into you."

I laugh at him. "That's only because Amanda hasn't spent much time with you, and therefore, she doesn't know how much of a charming individual you are."

"Dude, we've been in the same class since kindergarten."

"Right, right," I say, bobbing my head in a nod. "In the last three months, you haven't talked to her once."

"She's not interested!" he says, blushing a little. "And, heck! I'm not interested, either!"

"No, of course you're not."

"I'm not! I just find her visually appealing."

"Which is just enough reason for you to entertain her while I try my hand with Corrine."

"Man. Ew."

"What?"

"She's god-awful."

"No. She's just not very appealing to look at," I reply, fully aware that Lyle is not exaggerating. Poor Corrine isn't the prettiest rose in the patch. "Gosh, Lyle. You're so shallow sometimes."

"Cut with the dung!"

"You always complain about my dung," I tell him. "Anyhow. You're free to not come with us."

"Then maybe I won't!"

"Okay, then!"

We keep walking in silence for a little while, and we reach Grandma's house. I expect Lyle to come to a stop and continue the conversation, but he keeps walking without a word. In fact, I don't hear from him for a while, when he finally messages me during lunch.

She's the enemy, in case you forgot about Newt. And your crazy GF.

"Again using that damned thing during lunch?" Grandma Enedith barks, lifting a hand, threatening to hit me. "Have you no manners?"

"She has a point, John," Mom adds, and I pocket the phone silently. But then I gobble down my food and head straight to my room, earning a fair share of derogatory words from Grandma, who's also not okay with me swallowing my food like I just did. This is what I get for humoring Mom, and have lunch with them. I can still hear her protesting downstairs as I message Lyle back. That's what Mom gets for insisting.

That's exactly why we should keep a close eye on them, don't you think?

I also want to add that Scar isn't my girlfriend, but that would give him reasons to change the topic. My phone pings in my hand again.

You thought I'd give up, but no such luck, cousin. Hope you're doing fine.

Of course, I know Martin will never give up on me. But I'm decided to leave Celadon Bay behind, where it belongs, so I delete his message. I know better than encouraging Martin. And then I get a reply from Lyle.

No, I don't. You're asking for trouble, as usual. Rude is gonna have your head for dinner if he finds out.

I'm not scared of Rude, you know.

Then you're an idiot.

Took him a while to figure that one out. What Lyle doesn't know, is that I don't fear Rude or The Fist, not because I'm an idiot, but because I have nothing to lose. And just to be clear, someone needs to fight them back at some point.

Whoa. Does that mean I'm looking for a fight with Rude, after all?

None of the above seems to matter because, when I arrive at Aloha at 2:45, Lyle is already there, waiting for me just outside the front door.

"I thought you weren't coming."

"Someone needs to make sure you don't get yourself killed," he says, looking away.

"Thoughtful, despite you just being interested in Amanda."

"John, my dude. You're a great guy, but you're also pretty full of dung," Lyle says, frowning as he walks inside.

"That's pretty much your catchphrase at this point, man," I say, walking behind him, and we both join Dad at the counter. As usual, it's a slow day in Aloha. Sometimes I wonder if Dad makes any money at all running his business here.

"If it isn't Lyle and his cohort!" Dad jokes, and Lyle chuckles. "To what do I owe the honor?"

"Little cunt over here wants a date with some hot girl from our class," I tell him.

"Such amount of dung, dear lord!" Lyle replies, shoving me. "Actually the girl asked JOHN to teach her 'his ways', if you catch my drift."

"Which I won't," I interrupt, "because Lyle likes the girl in question."

"I don't!"

"He totally does," Dad and I say at the same time and Lyle gives us an eye-roll.

"We're just going to study math for mid-terms, and a couple girls will be joining us," I finally explain to Dad.

"Wow. That brings back memories," Dad says, wiping imaginary tears, and I brace for what's coming, because I know what he's talking about. "It's a throwback to the days in Celadon Bay, with Veronica joining you and Martin at the basement. Remember that, Champ?"

"I sure do," I reply, my mood plummeting at the memories. Dad doesn't really get it because he lives off of those memories. That's why Aloha Number Two had to be exactly the same as the original. Memories of Celadon Bay are his fuel. Without them, he'd have gone crazy by now. I'm about to say something else, when Corrine walks in, giving us a shy wave. Lyle and I leave Dad at the counter to greet her.

"Hi, guys."

"Ready to bask in the greatness of math procedures?" I ask her, gesturing at one of the tables.

"Kinda," she replies. "Oh, by the way, Amanda is outside, and wants to speak to you, John."

Lyle's eye-roll orbits the entire galaxy.

"Don't you dare, Lyle," I say, pretty sure he's ready to give me slag about it.

"Sure, sure," he replies, giving me a smug smile. "Just don't keep the girl waiting outside. It's cold, you know."

This time I'm the one who eye-rolls, and walk outside. Amanda is a few yards away, standing in front of a bookstore. She notices me as I'm walking to her, and her wave isn't shy like Corrine's.

"What's up?" I start, but Amanda turns back to the store.

"Hang out with me for a little while," she says. "The whole math thing was all a ruse. Sorry about that."

"A ruse?"

She lifts her index finger to her mouth, and whispers, "What do you think about Corrine?"

The question catches me off-guard. Other than the fact that she's not the prettiest girl around, I don't really know Corrine. "I don't really have an opinion. Why?"

"Because, small secret?" Amanda's brown eyes fix on mine, and a smile stretches her lips, "She likes Lyle."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, but keep it a secret."

What an unexpected turn of events. This "math ruse" could prove super fun all of a sudden. Granted, I don't see Lyle dating Corrine in seven million years, but I don't tell Amanda this. Instead, I return her smile. "So, what's the plan?"

"There's no plan, really," Amanda admits. "I was just hoping you'd keep me company while we leave the two of them alone for a few."

That old urge of running the heck away from ages ago returns full-force, but I manage to suppress it, even though I could think about a dozen things I'd rather do than hanging out with Amanda. That list includes getting clubbed by Grandma's cane, just so you get the idea.

"I mean, I'm all in for setting them up like that, but it's kind of cold out here."

"I know," she says, getting closer so her arm touches mine. "I should have thought this through... Sorry."

I retreat a little bit, keeping some minimum distance. "Should we check the books inside?"

"That's a good idea, actually," Amanda says, giving me a big, radiant smile, and we walk inside the bookstore. The scent of old paperbacks welcomes us before the store clerk. Amanda waves at the woman behind the counter, and she gives us a warm smile. The store itself is narrow, but stretches far to the back, and that's where Amanda and I go. She picks up a second-hand copy of Wuthering Heights. "Do you like reading, John?"

"Not particularly," I reply. "My ex-girlfriend back in Celadon Bay used to, and sometimes we would sit back and read together, but..." I trail off, because I'm just realizing I called Vee my ex-girlfriend. I kinda want to take it back into my mouth, chew on it, and spit it into a trash bin. Also, why did I even tell this to Amanda, of all people?

"So you had a girlfriend back there."

"Yes."

"What was she like?"

Adorable. Smart. Breathtakingly gorgeous. All things I don't say out loud, because nothing in Maple Heights deserves Veronica. Not even hearing about her. My hand reaches for the necklace, which I still wear as a reminder of all the things I did wrong.

"No wonder you're not dating anyone here," Amanda says, bringing me back to the bookstore. I look up at her, and for once, she's not smiling. Her lips purse in what feels like pity. Then she turns to examine her feet. "Although... there's this rumor going on."

"Rumor?"

"Someone mentioned that you might be secretly seeing Scarborough, from our class."

I swallow, making sure I keep my breathing even. Is she just making this up? She must be. The only people who know about Scar are Newt and Lyle, and they wouldn't spill anything. She has to be making this up.

Amanda's pursed lips twist like she just ate a lemon. "But that can't be true, can it?"

"What's the deal with her, anyway?" I try, to change the topic. Maybe I can convince her I don't know about Scar at all. "Why is she always all by herself like that?"

"Oh, so you don't know, after all," she say, giving me a half smile. "That's a relief, really."

"You're not answering my question," I press. "Nobody wants to even talk about her at all."

Amanda's smile fades, and her tone grows serious. "She should be locked in a mental institution."

"Why? What's wrong with her?"

"Her mother was murdered by The Fist last year."

Disturbing as these news are, they don't explain how this relates to Scar stabbing Amanda. Things don't make sense, there's something else I don't know.

Amanda's next words sear through her gritted teeth, finally completing the puzzle. "My father was accused of it, and found guilty."

I'm aghast. So this is how all the pieces fit? Is this why Scar attacked Amanda? How come Lyle and Newt didn't tell me about this? I doubt they didn't know. Also, how do I proceed? What do I tell Amanda, right now? Did her father actually kill Scar's mother? If so, the last thing they deserve is sympathy. Even so, I need to say something.

"I'm sorry about that."

"Thank you." Amanda takes a deep breath, closing her eyes. When she turns back to me, a weary smile returns. "Sorry to rant."

"Don't be," I reply, smiling back. "At least now I know what's going on."

"I can understand what's going on in Scarborough's head, more or less," she says, and I can't tell if she means it or not. "I'd be rabid if Scarborough's father were found guilty of killing my mom. But Rude? He's not that nice."

I kinda realized, Amanda.

"So, please. Don't get involved with her," Amanda adds. "I don't want Rude and you to be enemies. He gets too violent sometimes, and he'll be eighteen soon..." She pauses for a second, idly tracing a finger along a book spine. "One family member behind bars is enough."

"I'm not trying to pick a fight with him, if that worries you." Once again, I'm not sure whether I mean that or not.

"I sure hope so."

And there it is, again. That way she narrows her eyes and tries to figure me out. Her smile is now genuine enough to rub on me.

What a mess.

The door to the store swings open, and a flustered Lyle enters, followed by Corrine.

"Do you guys plan on making us wait forever?"

"Lyle, for the love of God," I say, immediately switching to tease-mode. "You don't get to be this level of toxic."

"What?! Toxic?!"

"Yes, Lyle! Toxic!" I gesture at him with both hands, and Amanda giggles. "You just can't be following me around like this all the time, man. That's bad!"

"For real, though," Amanda adds, reading the mood in a flash. "You're always following John around like a toxic leech. Give the boy a breather, would you?"

"What?! You too?!" Lyle protests, and we all laugh, even Corrine.

We finally go back to Aloha to study math, but even though Lyle and Amanda give me a hard time explaining stuff, the feeling that the rumors about me and Scar will soon reach Rude's ears still lingers in the air.

And, when that happens, hell will break loose.