Somehow, after our conversation about what Carlos had heard went down with Nini and EJ. We'd ended up at a mall, with Carlos convincing me to go to homecoming with him.

I declined at first, but Carlos can be very persistent when he needs to be; so now here we are a couple of hours later, Carlos had helped me buy a dress, and I was now on facetime with him, modeling it for him.

"Are you sure it's not too much?" I asked Carlos, smoothing down the tulle skirt; I told him I didn't care what I wore, letting him take the reins on picking out my dress; I kind of regret it now, though, Carlos had always had much more extravagant taste than me.

Carlos nodded widely, his eyes bright with excitement, "It's perfect; purple is definitely your color."

I furrowed my brows as I turned my gaze from Carlos to the full body mirror in front of me; even though I didn't try the dress on in the shop, it fits perfectly... I looked pretty; I just didn't feel like me.

"Trust me, El," Carlos continued, "you look amazing, now go change back into sweats; we don't want anything happening to the dress before homecoming."

I laughed but nodded in agreement anyway; grabbing sweats on my way into my en-suite bathroom; I shuffled into sweats and the first t-shirt I could find before walking back into my room, where Carlos was still on facetime.

"Ah, that's better," I sighed, sitting in front of my phone again; if I could wear sweats to the dance, I would. "did Laurie keep you company while I was gone?" I ask, nodding towards my dog, whose face was peaking up at the bottom of the screen.

Carlos nodded, "he did; he told me he wants to come and live with me, though."

"Then I'd be all alone," I frown, running my hands through Laurie's fur.

Carlos frowned, "your dad is working a nightshift?" I nod; for him to get the night of the show-off, he had to take a few extra shifts; I tried reassuring him it was fine, but he can be stubborn, "why didn't you tell me, you and Laurie could've spent the night."

"It slipped my mind," I admit, shrugging my shoulders, "we're okay though; I have some homework to catch up on anyway."

Carlos made a face at the mention of homework, something he probably had a ton of too; before he could make a comment, the sound of the doorbell rang.

"Someone's at the door," I told Carlos, standing up from my bed; Laurie trailed behind, "it's probably some salesperson; I'll call you back." Carlos nodded, waving goodbye; being the paranoid human that I am, I held my phone open, prepared to dial 911 if some psychopath was at my door.

I peered through the peephole, my hand quickly reaching for the handle once I saw who it was; Ricky stood on the porch, his skateboard tucked under his arm as he shivered at the windy weather.

"Ricky?" I ushered him inside; I texted him earlier in the day, asking how his meeting with Miss Jenn went and if he was okay, and just like the messages I sent the day before, he hadn't bothered to reply, so why was he here now?

"I'm sorry to bother you," Ricky apologized; before I could interject and reassure, he wasn't, he continued. "I tried spending the night at Big Red's, but I couldn't fall asleep, and then I went to Nini's and stood on her porch for a bit; but I couldn't bring myself to knock, and I just, I didn't have anywhere else to go." His voice cracked towards the end, and I could tell he was on the verge of crying, "I shouldn't have come here, I'm sorry-"

I grabbed Ricky's wrist as he reached for the handle, "Hey, it's okay," I reassured him; I hesitated, slowly moving my hand down, so it held his hand and not his wrist.

Ricky accepted my gesture, linking his fingers through mine; I led him into the living room. I let go of his hand, and Ricky moved across the room, sitting on the couch, placing his skateboard to the side.

I stood a few feet away, unsure of what to say, "Are you okay?" I regret asking that as soon as I say it, of course, he's not okay, "what's going on?"

Ricky looked down at his hands before speaking, "It's really hard to talk about it," He admitted; I nodded, stepping closer, "b-but I want to, I know I can talk to you."

I finally sit down, taking the spot next to Ricky; I turn my body, so I'm facing him, "My parents are separating; they're getting a divorce." He finally says, my heart drops at his confession, everything that happened earlier with him finally making sense, "and I'm really scared Eloise, everything is changing too quickly, and I can't keep up," The tears that were once threatening to fall begin streaming down his face; Ricky leaned his head into his hands.

I place my hand on his back, rubbing soothing circles; If being I'm honest, I'm shocked Ricky came to me with this. He trusted me enough to be emotional in front of me, and I couldn't even tell him about my mom, "Change is scary, and I know it doesn't feel like it right now, but it's gonna get better." Ricky peered up at me, and it took everything in me not to reach out wipe the stray tears away, "and I promise you, your parent's love for you isn't gonna change, no matter what, okay?"

Ricky nods, sitting up straight, "Okay." He whispers in return, "thank you, Eloise."

"Of course," I nodded, distracted by his hazel eyes and tear streaks left on his face, "Um, are you thirsty?" I snap myself out of my trance; there was something about Ricky Bowen's eyes that was so memorizing. "My mom used to say there isn't much that a good cup of hot cocoa can't solve."

Ricky let out an airy laugh, and I stood up, guiding him into the kitchen, "Do you uh, think your parents would be okay if I spent the night? I don't think I can face my mom right now."

I put the kettle on, grabbing two mugs from the cabinet; would dad be okay with a boy he doesn't know spending the night? Probably not, but if Ricky stays on the couch, and I explain the circumstances to him later, I'm sure he would understand. "My dad's working the night shift, but I think he'll be okay with it."

"and your mom, she won't mind?" He asked; I took in a breath; Ricky had been so vulnerable with me tonight, it felt wrong to keep this from him.

"No, uh," I keep my gaze on the counter, my hands gripping it nervously, "my mom passed away two years ago."

I don't turn around to see Ricky's reaction; I hated the looks of pity; the room was silent until I heard quiet footsteps, and finally, the feeling of Ricky placing his hand on my back.

"Eloise," I shut my eyes, not allowing the tears pooling my eyes to fall, "I'm so sorry, I had no idea." Ricky's hand lowered to my waist, gently turning me around to face him.

"I don't really tell a lot of people," I admitted, keeping my eyes on the ground "I just- when people learn you've lost someone, they treat you different... and I didn't want you to see me as the fragile girl everyone else thinks I am."

Ricky moved his hand off my waist, moving it to lift my chin, so I was looking up at him,

"Losing someone you love doesn't make you fragile, Eloise." He told me, I expected his eyes to be full of pity, but I only found comfort and reassurance in them, "if anything, it makes you stronger; you've gone through something most people don't have to until they're much older."

I don't reply; instead, I wrap my arms around Ricky's waist, pulling him into a hug; his arms wrap around me instantly, his chin resting on my head, "I'm sorry," I finally say, "You're going through a lot, the last thing you need is my problems on top of it all."

"Don't do that," He told me; I hummed in response, asking what he meant, "don't think your problems are a burden, okay?" I nodded, not moving my head from where it laid on his chest just yet, "Thank you for telling me, I'm always here for you."

"I'm here for you too," I reassure, finally moving back so I could look at him. Our arms fell to the side, both of us taking a small step back, "You don't have to if you don't want to, but I think you should go home," I admit to him, "I get your upset with your mom, I do... but I would do anything to have one more conversation with my mom, to hug her one last time, or just sit with her and hear her laugh... Don't waste the time you have with your mom right now ignoring her."

Ricky thought for a moment before simply nodding in response, "You're right." He pulled me into his arms again; my hands snaked around his waist like before, I wasn't the biggest hugger in the world, but it felt natural with Ricky.

We stood like this for a little bit, both pulling away after a few minutes. Unlike the last time we pulled away, we didn't back up right away or drop our arms. I was lost in Ricky's hazel eyes once again, so much so that when he began to lean in, I froze; at the last minute, just before his lips could brush mine, I turned slightly, his lips brushing my cheek instead.

"I, uh, should go," He nodded, both of us taking a step back; we walked to my front door in silence, "goodnight Eloise, thank you for everything."

"Of course," I nod, leaning my back against the wall behind me, "Goodnight, Ricky." We shared one last look before Ricky left, closing the door behind him.

Even though it was late, I couldn't sleep now; thoughts of Ricky kept flashing through my mind; if I didn't move, would he have kissed me? Did he want to kiss me? Was I upset that I turned at the last minute?

I moved into the living room, Laurie trailing behind me; we sat for a few minutes, the TV playing as I replayed what happened with Ricky in my head.

The sound of the doorbell broke me away from my thoughts, and I found myself rushing to it quickly, had Ricky come back? I get it if he did; I didn't mean to rush him into something he wasn't ready for.

I pull open the door expecting the boy who'd left mere minutes ago, furrowing my brows when I see it's someone else, the last person I expected to see at my door this late at night.

"EJ?"

"Hey, Eloise," He smiled at me in an almost shy manner, "um, I know it's late, but I was wondering if I could ask you something?" I nod, suddenly unable to speak, "Do you have a date for homecoming?"

My eye's widened; is this actually happening? "No, I uh, don't."

"Would you wanna go with me?"
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Eloise's outfit^^
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That cliff-hanger tho...
you'll have to wait until tomorrow to see if Eloise says yes