Theo stares intently at himself in the mirror. Dark circles underscore his blue eyes. His usually neat and tidy hair is a little unkempt, so he grabs his comb. The tangles come out with each stroke of the comb.

I'm doing this for... for Zoe.

Footsteps fail to catch Theo's attention as he combs his hair. The sight of his mother standing beside him in the mirror startles him. He turns to her with a blank look, his tired eyes appraising her. She looks positively pissed.

"...Is something the matter, Mother?"

The scathing glare Theo receives tells him something is in fact, the matter. His mother's voice is stern and cold as she speaks to him.

"Yes, Theodore. Let's talk in your room."

Mother departs from the bathroom. Theo purses his thin lips in contemplation.

What could this be about?

Theo follows his mother with an impassive look. She is waiting in his bedroom with her arms crossed. Theo enters, shutting the bedroom door behind him. Mother is quick to point at his bed. Interpreting this as an order to sit, Theo takes a seat on his bed.

Mother takes a deep breath, her chest rising and falling. Her voice is strained as she speaks.

"Theodore, I am going to give you one more chance to come clean before... I have to make you."

Theo's thoughts linger on the plan to rob the bank. He could tell her about that, but she would be incredibly worried and upset. It is nothing for Mother to concern herself with.

That plan is under control.

So what is it?

Speaking in a tired voice, Theo replies.

"I'm not sure what you're talking about, Mother."

Mother's face grows red as she scowls at her son. Theo doesn't flinch under her scrutiny. It is clear Mother's patience is worn thin. She raises her hand, clenching it into a fist.

"Mother?" Theo whispers.

Contrary to Theo's fears, his mother does not strike him. No, she strikes the collection of posters adorning his corkboard.

Theodore blanches as his elaborate bank heist plans are revealed. The posters fall lazily to the carpeted floor below. Mother has tears in her eyes as she lets her reveal sink in.

She knew about my plans?

No, she knows about the board?

Nausea bubbles up in Theo's gut as he breaks eye contact with his mother. His hands clench into fists. Mother has known the whole time. Mother speaks, her voice breaking as tears drip down her cheeks.

"I thought you respected me, Theodore."

Theo's jaw tenses as he looks at his own feet. The heart break in his mother's voice is enough to give him pause. He parts his lips, his voice a little hoarse as he speaks.

"I-I do respect you, Mother."

"Really? Do you? Because you certainly didn't respect me enough not to come up with this crackpot scheme! Robbing a fucking bank? What were you thinking?!"

The tang of blood fills Theo's mouth as he bites his own tongue. He stops himself, looking up at his mother with an expression of fear. Existential fear that comes from realizing you're not who you're supposed to be. Theo's voice cracks.

"I-I don't know. It seemed perfectly logical at the time..."

Mother is wiping the tears that spill down her cheeks. She grimaces at Theodore's words, laughing bitterly as she looks over at the window. She mutters words not intended to be heard.

"Perfectly logical? You're certainly his kid..."

She looks back at Theo to see him wide eyed, pale, and with bloody lips. Realization dawns on Mother as she hurriedly scoops Theo into a tight hug. Theodore is trembling in her arms. Her voice comes out gentle and soft as she does damage control.

"I'm sorry."

Theo clutches at his mother like a baby, his eyes shut tight. Tears are flowing down both of their faces. Mother whispers gently, doing her best to fix her mistake.

"I didn't mean it. You're nothing like that."

Several quiet moments pass as the two of them embrace one another.

The rising sun shines through the window, illuminating mother and son. The faint sound of people going about their days outside filters in through the glass. Mother gently releases her hold on Theo, standing up.

"What do you say we go grab some ice cream?" Mother offers.

Theo smiles slightly, wiping his glasses off.

"I would like that very much, Mother."

~

The sun is high above, it's rays heating the asphalt. A pebble flies through the air. The one responsible for kicking aforementioned pebble has his hands in his pockets. The pebble rolls to a stop. The boy approaches it, and kicks it again.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Derek! Hey!" Zoe shouts.

Derek lifts his gaze to see Zoe walking toward him. She's practically bouncing toward him. Contrary to her joy, dread wells up in Derek's gut. He gives her a hollow smirk. If she notices how fake his enthusiasm is, she doesn't say it.

Zoe grabs him, pulling him into a quick hug. Derek tenses up a little at the physical contact. Zoe feels the strange reaction, and pulls away. Her voice is laced with anxiety as she questions him.

"Is something wrong?"

Derek's smile cracks, falling away to an uncertain frown. His voice is unsteady as he replies.

"We just need to talk about something, is all..."

The concern in Zoe's doe eyes is heart breaking. Derek does his best to ignore her emotional state as he takes her hand. His larger hand gently guides her smaller self down the sidewalk.

Soft scrapes of their shoes hitting the sidewalk. The cool autumn breeze ruffling their clothes. Trees growing more common the further they walk. They're approaching the edge of town. Before long, a forest is looming before them.

How am I going to tell her?

Derek's eyes flicker to Zoe. She looks deeply upset by the suspense. Derek tightens his grip on her hand. Zoe looks up at him curiously. He doesn't say anything, instead pulling her into the forest. Guiding her to a familiar spot.

Beads of sweat slide down Derek's forehead as he walks. The crunch of leaves underfoot does little to drown out his thoughts. He had his emotions in check before, but now that Zoe is here he can't help but panic.

I just have to be honest, don't I?

The familiar sight of a rocky hill greets the pair of teenagers. Zoe glances up at it in understanding. Derek wordlessly walks her up to the edge of the raised boulder. The two of them climb up without any need for discussion.

With Zoe sitting beside him atop that rock, Derek feels he can finally say what is on his mind.

Derek clears his throat.

"There's a lot I haven't told you. That the guys haven't told you."

Zoe is looking out at the horizon. Derek is doing the same as he continues speaking.

"Do you remember the time we went to the arcade, and Theo fainted?"

The memory puts a frown on Zoe's face. She nods, glancing over at Derek. He doesn't make eye contact. Instead, he looks up at the clouds. Derek's voice grows quiet now.

"Well. When we were outside, we had a fight."

"A fight? Like, an argument?" Zoe interjects.

Derek tilts his head from side to side. He replies earnestly.

"We argued, but we also physically fought."

"What?!" Zoe gasps, shocked.

The surprise and fear coloring Zoe's adorable face is too much for Derek. His expression cracks into an ashamed wince. He raises his hand to put a small barrier between Zoe and his face. Zoe takes a deep breath. She asks Derek the obvious.

"Why would you do that..?"

Derek closes his eyes for a moment.

Just say it, you dumbass.

Derek's voice sounds strained as he admits the truth.

"We were fighting over you, Zoe."

Zoe looks at Derek with an incredulous expression. Her exasperated sigh serves to further Derek's embarrassment.

"So, you all fought over wanting to date me for yourself?"

Derek nods.

"...Why didn't you just ask me about that?"

The gears in Derek's head stop. He looks at Zoe's face, inspecting it for something. He doesn't find that something. He turns to look out at the horizon bitterly.

"I don't know."

Zoe scoffs, scooting closer to Derek. Her tone grows tender.

"It's okay not to know why they did it, but why did you do it?"

"I guess I was just... jealous. Really, really, jealous."

Zoe gently raises her hand to Derek's head. Her touch is gentle as she ruffles his hair. The affectionate gesture brings a little redness to Derek's otherwise pallid complexion.

Zoe removes her hand, and asks another question.

"Well this does explain some things, but it sounds like that isn't all you have to say?"

Derek nods in the affirmative. He sits up straight, and turns to look Zoe in the eyes. His voice is a lot more stable now.

"After we had that fight we made a pact. The rules were to basically avoid being romantic with you... for the sake of the friend group."

Zoe snorts, her amused smile bringing a blush to Derek's face.

"It was Theo's idea, not mine!"

"You guys are dorks... pfft. Go on?"

Derek pushes past his superficial embarrassment to explain further.

"That pact was broken when Theo confessed to you during lunch. Jamison and I almost beat him up over it..."

"What is with you guys? You were never violent in the past!"

Zoe looks both irritated and concerned as she says this. Derek bites his lip, but doesn't argue with her over their behavior. They had never fought like this in the past. It's strange.

Derek moves forward with the explanation.

"We didn't do anything. Theo stopped us with a deal..."

Derek trails off, and Zoe looks at him expectantly.

"...yes, and what was the deal?"

"We would take turns confessing to you. Dating you."

Zoe processes that for a little while. Her expression changes a few times before she speaks. She looks away from Derek, staring off at the distant city skyline.

"You guys have been doing all of this stuff behind my back?"

Derek follows Zoe's gaze. He stares off at the skyscrapers, and shivers. The autumn breeze isn't responsible, no. His conscious is to blame.

"Yes. There is more, too."

Zoe laughs bitterly. She's not smiling. Zoe's urges Derek to continue.

"Go on. Let's hear what else you all have been hiding from me."

"When that... creep... tried to stab you, Theo decided we needed to take drastic measures."

Derek pauses, but Zoe doesn't react.

"Theo made a plan to, uh... to rob a bank, and pin the crime on the assailant."

The wind kicks up a little. Zoe's dark hair flutters slightly. The sunlight makes her hair shimmer beautifully, and for a moment Derek forgets the situation. He reaches out a hand to absentmindedly touch her beautiful locks. She turns to glare at him.

"You all were going to throw away your lives for what? Some twisted sense of justice? Revenge?"

Zoe's icy words cut through Derek. He feels naked, lying bare before the well founded criticism.

"W-We didn't do it..."

That gets an unamused scoff out of Zoe. She sits up, her voice harsh.

"You didn't even consider what I wanted! Not once! You all just go and make your weird little plans behind my back, and expect me to play your game like a puppet?!"

Zoe is shouting now. The wind is buffeting Derek's clothes around as he sits up to match Zoe's stance. The sound of crows cawing in the distance echoes throughout the forest. Zoe has tears in her eyes.

"Z-Zoe, we didn't mean to-"

"Just shut up! I don't care what you meant! You were going to get yourselves locked away, o-or dead! How am I supposed to cope with losing you all at once?!"

Derek stiffens up at the sentiment behind Zoe's tearful rage. She stands up fully, seemingly ignoring the gale force winds which threaten to topple Derek from the boulder. Her hair is whipping wildly behind her in the wind. The clouds overhead are darkening.

Zoe opens her mouth to say something, but a flock of crows interrupts her. The loudly cawing beasts form a whirlwind, circling the two teenagers while drowning out all sound. Zoe glances around in confusion. Derek is holding his hands over his ears.

"Delivery for Ms. Zoe Kim!"

Dumbfounded, Zoe watches a letter fly out from the cyclone of crows. The envelope is marked with an unfamiliar stamp, and addressed to her. Stranger yet, the return address is listed as:

Headmaster Bartleby Black

101 Witchcrossing Road

Manavale, KS 66427

USA

Zoe finishes reading the label just as the crows fly up and away. Their black feathers lazily float down to rest upon the boulder beside the two perplexed teens.

The air is quiet. The sky is clear.

There's a letter in Zoe's hand.