When she was in art class, she was finally broken out of her trance by the teacher explaining the project for the day that caught her attention. "For today's project, you're going to create a painting. A portrait or a landscape, whatever you want. But it has to be something or someone that means a lot to you. Something or someone who makes you happy or gives you inspiration. You can use the paints or draw with colored pencils. You can work alone or in groups. Whatever you prefer. Have fun and make sure it's a masterpiece."

Everyone gets started on their projects, either drawing or painting. But Hollyn just stared at her desk, unsure what to do. "Hollyn, dear, are you alright?" The teacher asked her, walking over to her and looking at her with concern.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm okay, I'm just not sure what to draw. I-I, um, I have two people in mind. B-But, I'm not sure who." She explained, a frown on her face.

"Ah, I see. That can be tricky. Try to close your eyes and take a deep breath. Think about which person brings you the most joy or inspires you the most right now. Sometimes the answer will come to you when you stop overthinking and let your heart guide you." The teacher offered gently.

"Okay, thank you." She nodded, doing as the teacher said and closing her eyes. She took a deep breath, her thoughts going to Julien and Cole. Which one made her the happiest and which one brought her the most joy? Who gave her inspiration? Who would she see herself with for the rest of her life?

She opened her eyes, her gaze falling on Julien, who was laughing and talking with Areli and she was surprised when she noticed the faint blush on Areli's face as she shared a smile with Julien. Then she realized something. The answer was right in front of her the whole time. She turned back to her empty paper and grabbed her pencil, starting to sketch out a drawing. She let her hand and heart guide her, letting herself get lost in her art. She didn't even realize class was over until the loud bell ringing brought her back to reality. She looked up and noticed the class had already left and the teacher was putting her things away. 

She looked down and was amazed at the drawing she created. It was a portrait of Cole. He was depicted with a warm smile and bright eyes, a true reflection of the happiness and comfort he brought her. The sketch captured his kindness and the strength of their friendship. Hollyn felt a mix of relief and contentment as she observed the finished drawing that made her lips curve upwards while her heart fluttered.

"Hey, Holl, you coming?" Julien's voice snapped her out of her trance and she looked at the door where Julien and Areli stood. They had been having a conversation, walking together to the door, but paused when they saw Hollyn wasn't with them. Hollyn noticed how close they were standing to each other and how he was carrying Areli's books for her.

She smiles and nods, packing up her bag and standing up. "Yeah, yeah. Let's go."

They exit the classroom, Hollyn staying behind and keeping her distance from the other two. She was surprised when Julien was still carrying Areli's books and she was blushing again, keeping her head down. She never saw this side of Areli before. Areli was normally confident and bold, it was rare to see her so flustered.

"What's up with you two?" Hollyn asked curiously, glancing between the two.

"Nothing, we're fine." Areli tries to play it cool, looking over at her and trying to act normal. "Anyway, uh, I'm gonna get to my next class. See you guys later."

"You sure you're okay?" Hollyn pressed, noticing the slight blush on her cheeks.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just gonna go." Areli insisted, hurrying off before Hollyn can ask more questions. Hollyn turned to Julien, who was staring after Areli with a smile on his face.

"What was that?" She asked, her eyebrow arching.

Julien shakes his head with a smile. "Oh, nothing. We were just talking." He pauses before adding, "So, uh, have you thought about what you want to do about Cole and I?" He inquired, glancing at her.

"Actually, yeah. I-I've made my decision." She answered, biting her lower lip. How was she going to tell him?

Julien's face fell, his expression turning somber. "Oh. W-Well, I understand if you want to be with Cole. I can't blame you. I mean, he's a great guy. And I know you guys have been best friends your whole life. So, I completely get it. No hard feelings."

"It's not that, Julien. It's just that..." Hollyn trails off, not sure how to continue. She couldn't find the words to tell him. She didn't want to hurt him. "Jules, I don't wanna hurt you. I really care about you. But, I can't be with you. It wouldn't be fair. It wouldn't be fair to you...To Areli-"

"Areli? What does Areli have to do with this?" Julien interrupted, suddenly looking nervous and confused.

"Julien, I know. It's clear now you two have romantic feelings for each other. I can't believe I didn't see it before." She explained, shaking her head.

"Wait, no. Hollyn, no. I-It's not like that." Julien quickly denied, his cheeks flushing.

"Don't lie, Jules. I'm not blind. And I'm not stupid." Hollyn sighs, reaching over and grabbing his hands, giving them a squeeze. "Listen, it's okay. It's okay if you like her. And it's okay if you're scared or nervous. But, trust me. You need to go for it. You won't know until you try. Besides, I think you'd make a cute couple." She teased, smiling at him.

"Hollyn, really, it's not like that." Julien tried, still embarrassed and flustered.

"I've seen the way you two look at each other and talk to each other. You were holding her books earlier. And she doesn't normally blush, but she did with you. That's something, Julien. Trust me, I know. You don't need to hide it from me." Hollyn said softly. 

"I'm sorry." He immediately apologizes, his face falling. "I-I don't know what happened. I mean, we became closer lately and then last night, we talked to each other until we fell asleep." He confesses, his cheeks darkening. "Holly, I really did have feelings for you. I-I think I was falling in love with you-"

"That's the key word." She interrupts, squeezing his hands and smiling reassuringly at him. "You did have feelings for me. Not anymore. Because your feelings have changed. And that's okay. It's not your fault."

"But I feel like I'm betraying you." Julien confessed, guilt written all over his face.

"Don't feel bad, Julien. Don't ever feel bad. You can't control your feelings. I don't want you to feel guilty. Besides, I'm not hurt or upset. I'm happy for you. I want you to be happy. You're a great guy and you deserve someone who makes you happy and spend the rest of your life with. And I believe Areli is that person. So, please, go for it."

"Y-You really think so?" He asked nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. His heart was pounding and he was sweating, feeling anxious. He hadn't expected to have a crush on Areli, but it quickly turned into something deeper the more they hung out and he didn't realize it until now that his feelings for Hollyn have faded and he's falling in love with Areli.

"Of course, Jules. You're a catch. And anyone would be lucky to have you. Areli especially. You have my blessing." She said teasingly, nudging his side. "Just promise me eventually you will tell her how you feel."

"I-I'll think about it." He replied, smiling nervously at her. He was still nervous and worried about telling Areli his feelings. He didn't know how she would react. He was afraid of messing things up. He didn't want to lose her.

"Okay, that's all I ask. Now, let's get to lunch. I'm starving." Hollyn said, grabbing his hand and pulling him to the cafeteria. She was relieved. Relieved that she told him her choice and relieved that Julien didn't take it too hard. She was happy for him. He deserved someone and she was glad it was Areli.

As they walked down the hall, Julien noticed the picture of Cole in Hollyn's bag. "So Cole was the person you drew for the assignment, huh?" He asked teasingly, grinning at her.

"Shut up." She grumbles, shoving his shoulder. "Maybe." She mumbled shyly. 

"You gonna tell him your feelings now?" He pressed, raising his eyebrow.

"Yes. I-I'm gonna tell him my feelings." She confirms, biting her lower lip. Her stomach filled with butterflies at the thought of telling Cole her feelings. "Just not now. When I'm ready."

"Good. You should. I think you'd make a good couple. Besides, Cole would be a fool to turn you down." He tells her. "Let me know if I need to beat him up. You know I will." He added.

"Thank you, Jules." She chuckled, rolling her eyes as her face flushed. 

"No problem, Holly. Now, come on. We should get some food."

After a few minutes, they got their food and Julien sat with her at the art club's ususal table, chatting with the others. Julien immediately sat down in the empty seat by Areli, who smiled at him and then Hollyn.

"What took you guys so long?" Areli asked, arching her eyebrow.

"Sorry, we got held up. Hollyn was having trouble with her art assignment." Julien lied, not wanting to tell her what actually happened.

"Oh, cool." Areli smiled and went back to eating.

"Hey, guys!" Kira greets when she sat down, smiling at her friends. "Have you guys heard about the rumor about Alex crying like a baby when he found Cole and Paige kissing?"

Her friends look at her with surprise. "What?" Elise asked, her eyes widening.

"Wait, how did you find that out?" Lachlan questioned.

"I overheard it in the hallway. Although they said Alex cried like a little b***h. Not like a baby. But still." Kira rambled, taking a bite of her food.

"How do you know it's true?" Elise inquired.

"I don't. It's just a rumor." Kira shrugs with a grin. "You guys know I love gossip and stuff like this. Plus, I heard it from multiple sources. So, it might be true."

"That's wild." Lachlan said, shaking his head.

"Guys, don't look now, but Paige is going over to Cole and she looks pretty mad." Elliott speaks up, noticing the strawberry blonde girl storming over to Cole with her friend. He rolled his eyes when his friends looked in that direction. "Of course. Do the exact opposite." He mumbled.

"Sorry, bro, but when someone says 'don't look now,' you can't not look." Elise told him, nudging him with her elbow with a sheepish grin.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever."

Everyone at the table watches the interaction between Cole, Paige and her friend. Cole was sitting with his friends, raising his eyebrows at Paige when she said his full name. "Yeah?"

"What is wrong with you?" Paige demanded.

Cole stares at her with confusion. "Excuse me?"

"Um, hello? You've been telling everyone I was one of the girls sleeping over at your place." Paige told him, earning a few gasps from people in the cafeteria.

"Oh, d***." Dylan muttered, his eyes widening.

"What? I would never tell anyone that." Cole admitted.

"Oh, come on, Cole." Paige's friend argues. "Everybody knows. And once your dad tells Paige's dad-"

"My life is over!" Paige interrupted angrily.

Dylan shakes his head. "I wouldn't go that far."

Cole sits up straighter, furrowing his eyebrows at the new information he received. "Wait, why would my dad have anything to do with this?"

"Alex told him." Paige responded.

Hollyn grimaces at that and glances at Cole with concern. She knew the deal the Walter family had. No one snitched and when they did, it never ended well. She watches as Cole stands and walks over to Jackie, who had been in line getting her food. "Hey, where's Alex?"

"What are you doing?" Jackie shook her head, rolling her eyes.

"Where's Alex?" Cole repeated.

"Even if I knew, I wouldn't tell you. Just leave him alone." Jackie advised, shaking her head.

"Oh, okay. So you're on his side." Cole muttered, looking even more annoyed.

"Of course I am. Alex is the good guy here, Cole." Jackie replied.

Cole raises his eyebrows. "You think I'm the bad guy?"

"You think you're not?" Jackie shot back.

Cole is quiet for a moment before he forces a smile and says, "Don't worry about it. I'll find him myself." And with that, he left the cafeteria. Hollyn didn't hesitate to go after him, causing her friends to share a look.

"She's gonna go after him, isn't she?" Lachlan mused.

"Are we surprised at all though?" Kira countered.

Hollyn follows Cole into the hall, jogging over to him. "Cole, wait!"

"Not the time, Hollyn." Cole called out without turning around. He was pissed, to say the least. He was ready to confront Alex.

"Not the time, Hollyn." Cole called out without turning around. He was pissed, and he was on a mission.

Hollyn quickens her pace and caught up with Cole. "Cole, violence isn't the answer."

"Really? Because it seems like a pretty good one right now." Cole said, his voice cold and angry.

Hollyn reaches out and gently grabbed Cole's arm, urging him to stop. "Cole, I get that you're upset, but confronting Alex in anger won't solve anything. It'll only make things worse."

Cole sighs, finally turning to face her. His expression was tense and full of frustration and anger. "Then what am I supposed to do, Hollyn? He's spreading rumors about me and he snitched to our dad. You know about the deal with not snitching in our family and he just stabbed me in the back."

Hollyn could hear the pain and betrayal in his voice, and her heart ached for him. She could understand his anger and frustration, but she didn't want him to make things worse. "I know, and that sucks. But confronting him in anger isn't going to help. Let's just try to calm down and talk this out. Maybe we can come up with a solution that doesn't involve any punches."

Cole is quiet for a moment and he can understand where Hollyn is coming from. He knew she was right, but it was hard to contain his anger and frustration. So he pulls away from her grip and shakes his head. "I have to go."

"Cole..." Hollyn called out worriedly as he began walking away. Cole didn't say anything while he kept walking. Hollyn didn't hesitate to go after him, continuing to try and stop him. "Cole, you can't do this! Cole!"

Cole didn't even bother to look back as he continued to walk, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. Eventually he found out where Alex was and opened the doors to the auditorium where he was with Danny, who was practicing his lines for the upcoming audition of the school play. "Cole!" Hollyn exclaimed, grabbing his arm as she caught up to him.

Cole turns to her and gives her a look, a warning. "Don't." He warned, pulling his arm away.

Hollyn didn't let his expression deter her and she tightens her grip on his arm, giving him a look. "Cole, you don't have to do this. You're better than this."

Cole is silent, his expression still angry and full of betrayal. For a moment she's starting to think he's going to listen to her, but then he pulls his arm out of her grasp and continues down the steps to the front row where Alex sat. "What the h**l, Alex?" Cole demanded, storming over to him. Alex stood, his eyes wide as he looked back at him.

"Guys. No, no, no, no, okay? Not in the auditorium, please." Danny pleaded, not wanting his brothers to fight.

Hollyn follows after Cole, trying to stop him. "Cole, don't do this!"

"You told dad I've been sneaking girls in?" Cole questioned, glaring at Alex as he ignored Danny and Hollyn.

"Hey, Cole." Danny warned, quickly getting in front of him to push him back away from Alex.

"No." Alex replies. "He asked. I didn't say anything."

"Which is basically a yes." Cole countered.

"Yeah, you're one to talk. Brother of the year right here, telling the whole school that I cried like a b***h." Alex scoffed.

Cole narrows his eyes at him. "What the h**l are you talking about?"

Hollyn looks over at the door when she suddenly heard it open and multiple footsteps. She grimaces as she watches other students walk into the auditorium to watch the fight. "Guys, please, can we not do this right now?" Hollyn pleaded, standing in front of Cole to help Danny with keeping him away from Alex. It seemed to work since he didn't want to hurt her by accident, but it didn't stop him from glaring at Alex.

"Oh, that's how you're gonna play it? You're just gonna pretend you don't know what I'm talking about? Okay, cool. Good ting I have a great memory of you bawling your eyes out to mom when your little football dreams ended." Alex shot back.

That struck a nerve and Cole's anger seemed to only grow. Hollyn uses all her strength to keep him back with Danny's help, but it was getting harder. "Maybe I should start spreading that around, huh? I think Jordan caught it on camera."

"Stop!" Danny yelled when Cole finally pushed his way past Danny and Hollyn to run at his brother. Hollyn stumbled a bit as she's pushed to the side, Danny reached a hand out to grab her arm and help keep her steady. Cole shoved Alex back roughly, stumbling back when Alex shoved him. Gasps and cheers filled the room, Hollyn noticed a lot of students are recording the fight and she knew that wouldn't be any good. She was worried about that, but much more worried about the two brothers fighting. Cole tackled Alex, trying to knock him to the ground. Hollyn's heart pounded as she stood by Danny, the two of them watching the boys worriedly. They kept trying to get the two to stop but they didn't listen.

"Guys, help!" Danny called out, causing Hollyn to look at him with confusion and she glanced over at the steps, relieved to see Isaac, Lee, and Nathan running over to help break the two boys apart. Hollyn wanted to help get Cole and Alex apart, but she wasn't sure how. Because now it was a complete Walter boy mess with Danny and Lee trying to pull Cole away while Nathan and Isaac tried pulling Alex away. As chaos unfolded in the auditorium, Hollyn felt a mix of frustration and concern. She quickly joined in the efforts to separate Cole and Alex, but it was difficult as the two boys struggled against them.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! That's enough!" Mr. Choudhry shouted as he rushed into the auditorium. By this point, the group is successful to get Cole and Alex away from each other. All of them are out of breath and exhausted from the struggle. "All of you, principal's office now!"

Hollyn and the boys glance at him with a mix of shock and dread. "Now!" Mr. Choudhry demanded when no one moved. The group didn't hesitate to do as he said after that, following him out of the auditorium and towards the principal's office. Cole looked back at Hollyn, sending her an apologetic glance. She was probably going to get in trouble now for getting involved. She could tell he felt bad about it. But Hollyn just gave him a small smile and a nod, letting him know she was okay.

The walk to the principal's office was a quiet and tense one. They walked past the other students in the auditorium, Hollyn noticed her friends amongst the group, glancing at her with concern. She sent them a reassuring look, letting them know she was fine. Hollyn also noticed Jackie had been watching with crossed arms and looked disappointed. She didn't blame her. She was disappointed this happened too, but she should've expected this to happen. Cole and Alex had always fought, but it never got this bad. She assumed it was all that pent up anger and frustration with each other.

Hollyn took a deep breath as she entered the principal's office, bracing herself for whatever consequences she was about to receive. She had never been in trouble before, so she was nervous and anxious about what was about to happen. She had been caught in the crossfire and didn't want to be in trouble, but she couldn't stand by and let Cole and Alex continue to fight. It would've gotten even more out of control than it was.