I knew she would have said something like: Oh, gross. Did he slip you the tongue?

And I would have laughed and told her that yes, he had, and that I'd liked it way more than a lot, and she would have said, Double gross! And I would have laughed again.

Now she would never experience her own first kiss. Would never go on a date. Would never drive a car. Never ask me about sex. I'd never get to lecture her the way Mom had lectured me. Make sure you pick someone really special. Someone you love, who loves you in return. Your virginity is a gift, and you can't give it away twice. And, sweetheart, make sure you wait until you're absolutely ready, and not just because you're curious or because the boy will leave you for someone else if you don't. Here's a newsflash. If he'll leave you over something like that, he's using you and he'll eventually leave you anyway.

In the next box, I found a journal, bound by scratched black leather. There wasn't any writing on the outside, but I knew it had belonged to my mother because her perfume wafted from it. Were her secrets hidden on the inside? Reverently I cracked open the binding and read over the first page.

The battle has begun. The handwriting was neat, but not something I recognized. Maybe not my mother's, after all. Evil is here, it is real, and if we aren't careful, we'll be consumed by it. But it doesn't have to be that way. We can win. We should win. But too many people are ignorant of the truth and without the truth, we will perish.

What is the truth? We are spirit beings, those spirits our source of power, and we have a soul...or our logic and emotions, and we live in a body. Evil lurks in that spiritual realm. Some people can see it while they're still in their body. Most cannot.

Ugh. I didn't want to think about the world at work around me, not when I was dealing with so much nastiness in my own. And why did my all-love-all-the-time mother have this, anyway? I closed the book with a snap.

As I reached into the box to pull out something else, my phone beeped. I propped the journal and the picture of Emma against the wall, gave her one more smile, then strode to my desk. A text from Kat had come in. And, okay, I admit it. I'd dubbed her Meow.

I read, WTF happened 2 U 2day? A load of dill wrap, that's what!

Dill wrap?

A second text came in. Stupid autocorrect. Bull crap!

Any other time, that would have amused me. Gulping, I plopped into the chair and typed, Sorry. Went mental.

Duh! But why??

How should I respond to that? There was no way to explain the rabbit cloud or my paranoia without sounding, well, paranoid. Just didn't feel like being in a car.

Several seconds passed before her response came in. Ah, cars...UR fam. I get it now. U OK?

After my chat with Nana and Pops? I'm better. And how wonderful to have a friend like Kat. She saw past the surface and liked me anyway. She knew a little about what had happened, but didn't try to press for more. Didn't pretend it hadn't happened, and didn't heap on the platitudes.

Good. So check this. I ran in2 Cole after U ditched me.

What! AND??

He went after U 2. I take it he didn't find U either?

He'd gone after me? Why? Dazed, I stood, walked to my window and settled onto the cushion I'd rigged on the ledge. The storm had passed and the sky had cleared. The sun was in the process of setting, the sky a haze of pinks, yellows and purples-my new favorite color. Because Bridezilla had shown up last night, she would not reappear tonight. She never came two nights in a row, or even three, four or five days after a sighting.

He didn't, I told Kat.

2 bad. I think he would have offered U a ride w/him. Bet U would have been all over THAT. :) Maybe. Yes. No. Definitely not. I would have turned him down. He might be as tough as nails, but I still wouldn't have wanted to put him in danger. Stupid rabbit cloud that probably meant nothing.

So...how would someone with Cole's forceful personality have handled a rejection? He was used to getting his way. One glance at him, and anyone with half a brain could figure that out. (I barely qualified, I'm sure.) Would he have tried to talk me into accepting? Or just tossed me over his shoulder fireman-style and carted me to his car?

Better question: Why did that second option make me want to smile?

Another beep sounded. Or should I say, U would have been all over HIM? Kat had typed.

No way, I replied. Even if I'd wanted to throw myself at him, I would have resisted.

Good girl. Make him work 4 it. Oh! Game on Fri & party on Sat. I have idea Cole will show up 2 both just 2 C U. See ya!

I hit her back with a quick, Really?

Nothing. No response.

Kat?? WILL HE BE THERE??

Again nothing.

If U don't answer, Mad Dog, I'll tell every1 UR nickname is PRINCESS FLUFFY.

Still nothing.

We will have serious beef 2morrow! I told her.

Annnd still nothing.

Smart girl that she was, she'd probably realized a "beef" with me was more likely to be mashed potatoes. I was mush where she was concerned.

Distraction time. Sighing, I logged on to my computer, searching for any and all references to Cole Holland.

During the ensuing hour, I learned that Cole did not have a Facebook or Twitter page. Or, if he did, he hadn't used his real name. None of the girls had sent me that link to YouTube, so I could only surmise the body slam was another "true story." The only articles that mentioned him were those about the deaths of his friends, the ones who'd died from the disease Kat had mentioned. Antiputrefactive Syndrome, it was called. There were no mentions of him on the school webpage. He wasn't part of any clubs, teams or committees.

Nothing on his ex, either. And I'd tried every avenue available to find something, anything.

I didn't know Frosty's or Bronx's real names, so searching for them was out.

On a whim, I searched my own name, just to see what others could learn about me if they did a little recon for themselves. First thing to pop up? Articles about the accident and the tragic teenage girl who'd lost everything.

With far more force than necessary, I shut the computer down. I hated that anyone in the world could read those things and pity me.

Now, needing a distraction from my distraction, I showered, dressed in a tank and cotton shorts and dried my hair. The girl staring at me from the mirror surprised me.

There were bruises under her too-bright blue eyes. Her cheeks were hollowed, though flushed. Her lips were puffed from being chewed so often. She looked fragile. Breakable. Suddenly Cole's words about the fairy tale made sense. He hadn't been complimenting me. He thought I was a Cinderella in need of a fairy godmother and couldn't hold my own against Mackenzie. And he might be right. A strong wind might break me in half.

I had to start exercising. I had to start sleeping. Something. My mom would have been horrified to see me like this. My dad wouldn't have noticed unless someone told him-he would have been too drunk-but he would have sat me down at the dinner table and lectured me. If you don't keep your strength up, how can you protect yourself from the monsters? would have been the first words out of his mouth. Emma would have worried-had worried, in my vision of her-and more than anything in the world, I had hated worrying her.

I stalked to my window to close my curtains. No watching the forest tonight, I decided. No jumping at every eerie whistle of wind, every writhing shadow. I'd say my prayers and try to sleep. If bad dreams tried to consume me, I'd read.

Before I could fit the dark material together, my skin began to tingle and burn, the fine hairs on the back of my neck rising-as if someone was watching me. My heart drummed erratically as I peered out, frantically searching.

There was no sign of Bridezilla and the Groom of Doom. No sign of life whatsoever, in fact. Shaking now, I sealed the crack, blocking out the night completely. But I didn't walk away. I stood there for one minute, two, trying to get my body under control.

Gritting my teeth, I jerked the curtains apart. Saw movement to the left. I zeroed in on it and thought I saw a tall, muscled body dressed in black. Thought that body stopped, turned-and glowing violet eyes met mine.

Will anything ordinary ever happen to me? I wondered the next morning as I trudged onto the bus. After maybe or maybe not seeing Cole, I'd gone to sleep, as planned, but bad dreams had awoken me. I'd tried to read but had ended up pacing and obsessing about those violet eyes.

Had I seen them, or had I imagined them?

Imagined, surely. Cole would never have stood outside my house, simply watching me. Plus, he didn't know my address. I hadn't even given it to Kat.

As lost in thought as I was, I didn't remember to keep my head down and my gaze averted. At the back of the bus, I spotted Justin Silverstone, with his dark hair and puppy dog brown eyes.

He gave me a warm smile and waved me over. I couldn't leave him hanging; his feelings would be hurt. And I couldn't hurt his feelings because I kinda owed him. As I lugged my thousand-pound backpack to the end of the bus, I noticed that the dark-haired girl who sat across from him was glaring at me. I didn't know her and had no problem ignoring her.

Justin slid to the window, making room for me. I eased down beside him. "Hi," he said. He smelled nice, like some kind of fruity cereal and toothpaste.

"Hi." His hair wasn't brown, as I'd assumed. The morning sun cast bright rays through the glass, highlighting the strands. He was a redhead. In fact, the strands suddenly looked as if they were on fire.

"I'm Justin."

"I know. You kinda made an impression in the cafeteria, and the girls filled me in. I'm surprised you don't go by Ace or Killer, though."

His eyes flashed with irritation. "Why? What'd they tell you about me?"

I wasn't sure what I'd said to annoy him and hurried to soothe. "Only your name and the fact that you keep to yourself, but everyone at school seems to go by a nickname. Kat, Frosty, Bronx," and because I didn't want to single out Cole's group, I made up a few. "Boo Bear, Jelly Bean, Freckles."

The irritation vanished and he laughed. "Good point. What about you?"

"I'm Ali."

"Just Ali? Not Angel or Snowcake?"

A bubble of amusement grew. "Snowcake? Really? That's what you'd pick for me?"

He reached out, pinched a lock of my hair between his fingers, reminding me of Cole. "Yeah. Don't kill the messenger, but it kind of fits."

"Maybe I'll just hurt the messenger a bit." I felt at ease with him, I realized. I liked him. And, the good news was, he had to live close to me since we were riding the same bus. Maybe we could, I don't know, hang out after hours. Clearly I needed to break up my routine. "By the way, I never thanked you," I said. "Sorry about that."

"Thank me for what?"

"For helping me out with Mr. Butthole that first day, as well as the pointer about Mackenzie."

He raised a brow, even as he gave another laugh. A warm, natural sound, as if he found amusement in a lot of things and wasn't afraid to enjoy himself. "Butthole? You are into nicknames, aren't you?"

I shrugged.

"By the way, the trick with Buttle slash Butthole is to suck up. If you tell him that he's the smartest teacher you've ever had, he'll be yours all year."

Buttle. Duh. How could I have forgotten that? "Is that what you did?"

"I manned up the words a little, but yeah."

"Manned up," I replied with a snort. "So you grunted a lot and drilled your knuckles into his shoulder."

"That's cave-manning up. Learn the difference."

Now I was the one to arch a brow. "Show me the difference."

"All right. Here's manning up." His expression took on an awed cast. "Dang, Mr. Buttle. My brain hurts from information overload. Good job, dude."

The bus hit a bump, and we bounced in our seats. "So telling him that he clearly put the 'fun' in 'funeral' is out?" The moment I spoke, I wanted to snatch the words back. No way did I want to talk about funerals.

"Please, please, please tell him that. I'll even walk you to his room the moment we get to school," Justin said, but he must have noticed my discomfort a second later because he quickly changed the subject. "So, hey...I noticed you hanging with Kat."

"Yes."

"Have you known her long?"

"Met her over the summer. Why?"

A long, heavy pause; a shrug. "Last year she hung out with Cole Holland's crowd, and she definitely will again. Once someone breaches their inner trust circle, that someone doesn't leave it without a world of pain. I'd be careful if I were you, or she'll drag you down with her."

I liked Kat. A lot. I didn't care who she hung out with or dated, even if that "who" had Cole on speed dial. As for Justin's second warning, I wasn't sure what was happening between me and Cole-something? Anything? Nothing?-but I wasn't going to discuss it with him. I could barely even discuss it with myself.

"So you know him? Cole, I mean?" I asked, not changing the subject but making it clear relationships were off the menu.

Justin lost his smile. "Yep."

"Have many people entered that trust circle of his?"

"Nope. Hey, we're here."

I looked around, and sure enough, the bus had stopped in front of the school, and all the other kids were standing, moving outside. The ride had never ended so swiftly.

I stood and strode down the aisle, Justin close on my heels. Automatically my gaze shot to the sky. A long stretch of baby blue, fat clouds inching by-but no rabbits. Thank you, Lord.

Justin stayed by my side as we entered the massive, winding building. "We should hang out this weekend," he said.

"Yeah, I-" Had promised to go to Reeve's party, I recalled. Well, Kat had promised for me. Because I adored her, I had to keep that option open. Just in case. And wow, what a difference a few days could make. Before, I'd scrambled for an excuse, any excuse, to avoid going. Now, I was actually considering making an appearance. "Wait. I'm not sure-"

"Never mind," Justin muttered, his voice thick with embarrassment. "Don't worry about it."

"No!" I rushed out. "Not never mind. I wasn't thinking of ways to turn you down or anything like that. I was figuring out the best time."

He gave me another warm smile, all straight white teeth and happiness. "Yeah?"

It was a grin I found myself returning. "Yeah."

Of course, that's when I ran into Cole. Literally ran into him. I had been looking at Justin, not paying attention to the path ahead of me, and plowed right into Cole's solid chest.

His arms snaked around my waist, preventing me from ricocheting off him. I grabbed his shirt automatically, fisting the material. He was so strong, so steady, that he didn't move an inch.

"I'm so-" Our gazes locked, my blue with his violet, and once again the rest of the world faded away. Only, this time we didn't kiss. We- -fought?