"Amber, sweetheart, may I have your attention?" Pierce waved his hand in front of my face, looking intently at me.

"Hmm?" I had spaced out... We were seated on his couch after school for my tutoring session—but that threatening note was all that filled my frazzled mind. Someone other than Pierce had managed to break into my locker—that was unsettling. And I still hadn't gotten around to telling him about it although I wanted to—I was debating if I should even tell him or not. I half didn't want to worry him... I thought I'd wait and decide until after the tutoring. Bad idea, it cost me my attention and I was too fazed by it to continue.

Because I had a feeling I knew who it was from.

"Babydoll, you've been distracted all afternoon, is everything alright?" Pierce asked me, shutting my book and massaging my knee. I sighed, shaking my head. Might as well come clean now.

"No... I received a note today that's been worrying me." I pulled out the note that I'd kept in my pocket to show Pierce. He read it and his fists clenched.

"Damn," he uttered in a dark voice, "someone's actually dared to threaten my babydoll."

"It could be Trey, Pierce," I said wearily, "he's back at school today... and I receive this note on the very day he returned? No way it can be a coincidence."

"Maybe, but there's also that damn newspaper club to consider," Pierce said, "I've heard them ranting and raving outside my office."

"I guess it's a possibility," I said miserably, burying my head in my hands. "I can't believe someone's got it in for me."

"Don't you worry, babydoll, we'll get to the bottom of this," Pierce assured me, squeezing my hand. "Why didn't you tell me about it sooner?"

"Sorry," I replied meekly, "I didn't exactly want to worry you." Pierce sighed, pulling me onto his lap.

"Amber, you really have to learn to rely on me more," he said gently, stroking my arms. "How am I supposed to be a good boyfriend and protect my babydoll if she won't come to me when she's in trouble?"

"You're already a wonderful boyfriend, Pierce," I replied softly, resting my head in the crook of his neck. "You've been there so much for me that I didn't want to worry you with another one of my problems."

"Did you forget what I told you when we first started dating?" Pierce asked, curling his finger under my chin. I looked up at him blankly as he continued. "Whatever happens to you is my concern, babydoll. Your problem is my problem. We're a team." I smiled at him, moved beyond words. I never knew dating could be so beautiful—no, it was my Pierce who made it beautiful.

"Pierce, I—" I'd just been about to thank him when he captured my lips with his own, cutting me off. I moaned in pleasure as it quickly developed into a long-drawn french-kiss. Within moments, his tasting tongue made me forget all my problems and his audacious arms desperately trying to pull me closer made me feel safe and protected all over again. I sighed contently when he finally withdrew, looking tenderly at me.

"Don't you worry, babydoll, we're in this together. You've got me. I'm not gonna let anyone hurt you again." I know. Because you're my golden boy.

"Now what's say you and I do something more fun to get your mind off things?" Pierce suggested with a roguish smirk. "Maybe watch a movie... Since tomorrow's the weekend, we can afford a break from the chemistry-cramming." I giggled.

"What did you have in mind?" I asked. His sparkled as he spoke.

"I wanted to show you my favorite movie—the count of Monte Cristo."

"Oooh, I'd love to watch it, I've read the book with Thea when I was little!" I exclaimed excitedly.

"Great," Pierce smiled. "But first, let's get some snacks. You ever make your own pizza?" My eyes only shone at that suggestion in reply. This was gonna be a wonderful evening.

~

Spending time with Pierce became my happy place—literally. Every moment spent with him felt like the clock had stopped and eternity had begun. Until reality came knocking at the door... still, I enjoyed every moment in his presence.

The following Saturday I spent at home as Thea had returned, asking me another million questions about how my relationship with Pierce was going. I was pleased to report 'fabulously' and she was tickled pink to hear it. I even shared about my impromptu date from last night at his place—we'd made homemade pizza from scratch. Pierce was big into homemade cooking thanks to his mom—he even had a sexy chef hat and apron which he wore while we worked. It was so freaking cute, made my mouth water for him more than the pizza.

I even showed Thea the dozen pictures we took of ourselves and the pizza—of course, that led her to telling me all about her kitchen adventures with Matteo at college. She said they would always cook together and although the first two months meant eating a lot of burned food for dinner, it eventually got better. I giggled.

"So what's your favorite dish with Matteo?" I asked her while we painted each other's nails in my room.

"Potatoes au gratin," Thea replied. "Although chocolate croissants are a major achievement for us, we learned to make them after a lot of trial and error. It's Matteo's favorite and now mine."

"Wow," I said, admiring their persistence in the face of error. Their relationship was so strong even after four years, it was amazing to behold. I decided in my heart that my relationship with Pierce would not only survive the test of time but also thrive, despite circumstances.

~

On Monday, I received another unsavory note in my locker.

"Not again!" Cassie gasped as I took it out. But before I could read it, Pierce's hand reached out over my shoulder and pulled it from my grasp—he'd been standing behind me, guarding me from the nearby guys who'd usually razz me first thing in the morning.

"I don't want you to read it, babydoll, I'll deal with it," Pierce whispered quietly, only for me to hear. "You should get to class, I'll see you at lunch." And he walked off with the note, saving me from a disturbed mind. With my Pierce on the case, whoever wrote that note was gonna be roasted alive. Haruko folded her arms.

"If it's Trey again, I hope Hartman comes down on him HARD," she said furiously.

"Yeah, this is outright bullying, Amb, it can't go on like this," Cassie added worriedly.

"Guys, it's okay, Pierce will take care of everything, I know it," I replied, feeling more at ease since the last note.

"I sure hope so, Homecoming is only five days away!" Cassie said in a panic.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Haruko asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Have you forgotten the old Homecoming hazing tradition?" Cassie whispered cautiously. Haruko scoffed, waving her hand.

"Oh, please, that hasn't been executed in years!" She said insistently. The tradition she was referring to was an old Bellfort prank the school's baddest of the bad usually pulled on the most unsuspecting, innocent victim. I hadn't thought about it until Cassie mentioned it and swallowed nervously now that it was in my head.

"Ugh, see, now you made her worry!" Haruko groaned at Cassie, patting my arm. "Don't worry, Amb, you've got us. We'll make sure no one's gonna haze you." Cassie looked unsure.

"Getting these anonymous notes with Homecoming around the corner can't be a—"

"CASS!" Haruko hissed, and she zipped her mouth. I inhaled sharply. What if she was right? What if these notes were setting me up for a horrible hazing on Homecoming? Almost made me terrified to go to it now...

The last time someone executed the hazing was in Thea's time on her friend Tom when they were freshmen—she said the culprits all spun a yarn about vampire students roaming the school on the night of Homecoming (Tom had a horror of vampires) and on the night of the dance, they dressed up as vampires and chased Tom with a chainsaw through the hallways. Poor guy was traumatized for a year after that. Thankfully, the culprits had been caught and punished. Still, the experience was horrifying for Tom, from what Thea said. I didn't want to go through something like that...

I hoped Pierce would catch whoever wrote those notes before Homecoming—for my own sake.

~

"Amber and Monterey, sittin' in a tree..." More guys razzed me on my way to Pierce's office for lunch. I scowled at them, scrunched a pierce of paper from the book I was carrying into a ball and threw it at them in irritation.

"Screw off!" I yelled at them before disappearing into Pierce's office and slamming the door shut behind me. Pierce looked up from his desk, startled.

"Christ, did a whirlwind just enter my office?" He asked, staring wide-eyed at me. I sighed.

"Sorry, sweetie, just dealing with more guys teasing me because of Trey."

"That's still going on, huh?" Pierce asked, coming over and hugging me. "I thought it might've died down by now..."

"Nope, they're still squawking it," I groaned, burying myself into his comforting arms. "And now I have another problem to worry about..." Pierce looked inquiringly at me and I sat down, telling him about the 'Homecoming hazing' tradition over a comforting lunch of warm Thai green curry and rice—the gravy was like soup, delicious to drink. Pierce always bought me the best lunches, he was such an amazing boyfriend. He clicked his tongue when I'd finished explaining.

"Damn, I remember that, Tom Harrison was a victim of that. Took Matteo, Shane, and myself to bail him out of it." I blinked in surprise.

"You saved Tom back then?"

"We weren't close at the time, but that was a really cruel prank. We had to help when we found out about it, we couldn't let the poor guy die of fright. The bit with the chainsaw was overkill," Pierce said, wincing. I nodded fretfully.

"And now it looks like someone's setting me up for the prank," I said, putting my head down on his desk in despair.

"Hey, hey, babydoll, did you forget who you're with?" Pierce asked, lifting my head. "My girlfriend's not getting hazed on Homecoming, trust me."

"But we still don't know who's behind the notes, or what they might be planning and—"

"SHH," Pierce said authoritatively, placing a sexy finger on my lips, "no more worrying, babydoll. The only thing you need to worry about is what to wear." I smiled a little at that.

"Well, the girls and I are going shopping this Friday for our outfits," I said, "which means I miiight have to miss our tutoring session..." Pierce pouted.

"Mmm, looks like I'll have to keep you for extra time this week then to make up for Friday," he said. I smiled wider, giving him a dreamy look.

"You can keep me as long as you want, Pierce," I uttered sweetly. His frown relaxed into that seductive smile of his and he intertwined his hand with mine.

"Forever won't be long enough with you," he replied, and needless to say, the only activity our lips engaged in after that was in silence.

~

By Friday however, I got so mad I almost lost it when Vera Wallis and her ex newspaper club members started a new line of teasing on me—they said I was a shoo-in for the 'Smuttiest couple of the year award' with Trey. I actually kicked down a trashcan and sent it rolling after them as they walked away cackling like the witches they were. That wretched video of Trey and me kissing was the bane of my existence! I was sure they kept copies of it!

They proved my point when I opened my locker that afternoon and saw a blown-up picture of that damnable kiss stuck on the inside. I let out a frustrated howl, yanked the picture out and tore it to pieces. Where's a chainsaw when you need it?!

To add to my woes, I found another terror note in my locker—I didn't read it, I just knew it was a terror note from the similar way it was folded. Pierce told me not to read them and to just bring them to him if I ever got any more so I put it away to show him at lunch. Thankfully, he had stopped leaving his love notes in my locker before the terror notes started and left them in my chemistry textbook instead. It would've bothered me a lot if whoever left those terror notes had to see my love letters.

One thing bothered me though—something told me the terror note and the picture were put inside my locker by two different people—which meant that more than one person was breaking into my locker. That was disconcerting... Who was out to get me so badly?!

"I wanna strangle everyone in that stupid newspaper club, it's maddening!" I ranted to Pierce at lunch. "It's been going on for so long, you'd think people would find new topics to gossip about but nooo! That wretched kiss is all they've got going on!" We were seated in the teacher's lounge as it was empty again—Pierce said none of the teachers could resist the milk pudding on the menu today. He frowned thoughtfully.

"Babydoll, I might have a solution to that but... it might mean going public and I won't compromise on that unless you're okay with it," he said. I looked confused.

"Going public? With what?"

"Us..." Pierce said quietly. I shook my head immediately.

"No, no, Pierce, I can't have you risking your job to bail me out," I said determinedly.

"Babydoll, you really need to stop worrying about my job," Pierce smiled tenderly. "That's not the point here. The point is, it might extinguish the rumor about you and Russo but it also might subject you to more razzing."

"What were you planning to do?" I asked with wide-eyes. He quickly pulled out his phone, worked on it for a few moments and held it up in front of me.

"That's us..." I uttered. Pierce had put together a string of images of us from our dates and set them up for posting on Instagram.

"A lot of students in your year still follow my old 'Golden Boys' account," he explained. "Guess they were fans since freshman year. Just one word from you, babydoll, and I can hit 'post', and the whole school will know about us. That should demolish all rumors about you and Russo." I swallowed. Yep, that would do the trick. Was I ready for the whole school to find out Pierce and I were sweethearts?

"Do it," I replied resolutely, staring him straight in the eye. Pierce gazed back intently.

"Are you sure, babydoll?"

"I'm ready for it, Pierce, I don't want to hide 'us' anymore either," I said softly. "If the truth will set me free from all this razzing, I'm all for it. I don't care what people think afterward, as long as this squashes the story about me and Trey."

"And the repercussions—"

"I can handle them," I assured Pierce. "As long as it doesn't get you in trouble with your job, I'm okay with it."

"Don't worry about my job, Mr. Byrd is on the verge of asking me to quit Harvard and become a full-time teacher here," Pierce laughed. "He says he's never seen everyone's grades take two steps up before I started working here." I giggled.

"I'm proof of that," I said happily, waving my latest test paper at him. I got a solid C+ again and Mr. Byrd had been thrilled with me too—he rightly credited Pierce for my good work.

"Mmm, my babydoll's made leaps and bounds since we first started," Pierce said, looking proudly at me. At least my academic life was going good even if my social life was on the rocks.

"Any updates on the anonymous note-writer?" I asked Pierce in a cautious voice. He avoided my eyes as he spoke.

"I'll handle it, babydoll, don't worry about it." Okay, guess he didn't want me to know... I passed him the note I found in my locker from earlier.

"Got another one today... don't freak out, I didn't read it," I said quickly. He opened and read it before scrunching it up in a ball in his fist.

"They're gonna pay dearly for this," Pierce vociforated and stuffed the note inside his pocket. "You promise you didn't read it, right, babydoll?"

"I didn't, I promise," I said, holding up my hands. "Why, was it that bad?" Pierce nodded.

"I don't want you to be subject to stuff like that, I'm gonna grind whoever wrote those notes to the dust."

"Looks like Trey will have to go back to India soon..." I mumbled to myself. Pierce exhaled.

"Let's talk about something else, babydoll. Forget about all this doom and gloom, I've got everything well in hand. Have you decided what you're gonna wear tomorrow?"

"Right... tomorrow..." I trailed off doubtfully. With everything that happened, I'd almost forgotten Homecoming was tomorrow.

"Wear something sexy for me, alright?" Pierce said with a smirk. "I love it when you dress up."

"As long as you promise me a few moments alone together," I replied with a blushing smile. He pecked my cheek, sending my heart racing a mile a minute again.

"Don't worry, you'll be in my sights all night."

~

"Amb, you were born to wear purple," Haruko said as I twirled around in the boutique we'd come to shop in. So far I had tried everything purple in the store until I finally felt a spark with a glittery, rhinestone-covered lilac dress—it had a sexy V-neck Pierce would like, a shimmering flair skirt that cut off just above my knees, and spaghetti straps.

"I don't think I've ever seen you in a short dress," Haruko said with a laugh. "Seeing your legs it's like—I wanna go 'whoa, she has legs!'" I laughed.

"I gotta impress Pierce," I said, patting the skirt while gazing at it in the mirror.

"Blue, no, pink, no, white!" Cassie meanwhile was frantically holding up one dress after another in front of herself before the mirror, unable to decide what to wear.

"Gold, Cass, we all know you're gonna be Homecoming queen, why not wear the school's color proudly?" Haruko asked. Cassie looked thunderstruck.

"That's it!" She exclaimed and scurried off to find a gold dress, no doubt. I giggled.

"It's like she forgot..." I mumbled. I turned back to Haruko who was sitting by her dress. It had taken her two minutes to pick it out—she wasn't gonna wear anything but black. Punk rock was her thing and even a Fashion Runway wasn't going to change her. Her dress was gorgeous though, she picked a strappy heart-necked gown with an A-line tulle skirt.

"So what did Pierce say about the notes?" Haruko asked me.

"He told me not to worry, he's on the case," I replied, "the bigger problem is tomorrow, Haru. It's gonna be so embarrassing if I get voted with Trey as 'couple of the year'!" I whined in my throat at the thought.

"No worries, all you have to do is sneak away from the dance during that bit of the award ceremony," Haruko said calmly, "we just gotta be there and scream our lungs out for Cass when she's crowned."

"I've got it!" Cassie squealed, returning just then. She returned with a gorgeous golden gown that had a mermaid skirt, and feathery embellishments around the shoulders.

"Wooohooo, whoever gets to be Homecoming king ain't gonna be able to keep his hands off you!" Haruko said, clapping.

"I agree, that's the winner, Cass, you'll look like royalty in that!" I said with a smile. "You'll literally be the belle of the ball like Belle."

"Thank you, thank you," Cassie said, bowing graciously. "Now show me what you picked, Amb!" I held up my dress.

"Sweet marshmallows, Hartman is gonna eat you up in that tomorrow!" Cassie said with glee. I blushed.

"Hehehe, yeah... hey, there's something I need to tell you guys..." I remembered I had to warn my friends about Pierce's plan to post our pictures on his 'Golden Boys' account—he'd agreed to post the pictures of us after school tonight. That way no one would be able to interrogate me until tomorrow at Homecoming. Everyone would remain itching with questions for twenty-four hours.

I just had to tell my friends.

"You sure about it, Amb?" Haruko asked me in concern. "Once people find out you're dating the TA..."

"They'll get off my back about Trey," I said with a shudder. "The pictures will plant enough doubt in everyone's head without it getting too far."

"Anything's better at this point," Cassie said with a grimace. "I'm surprised all this bullying and teasing hasn't given you sleepless nights, Amb. if it were me, I'd have needed therapy to calm my nerves!"

"Well, I do have a wonderful boyfriend to distract me," I said with a demure, blushing smile. My friends giggled.

"True that," Haruko said. "Now come on, let's go pick out some jewelry and then we'll be ready to dazzle tomorrow."

💜

Second half of the story has begun!🥳 Yeah I had to throw in my favorite movie, a real manly movie something Pierce would like🤭. I was almost tempted to make a bonus chapter covering the pizza date...😏 Like how it went lol. Anyway, hope you're excited for Homecoming, it's gonna be a blast!🎉 Amber's dress is in the character pics btw, the light lilac one. And oooh, you ready for the big reveal?😯 People are gonna find out about A+P! Eeek!😍 Thoughts!