Guys when I tell you I went out of my element with this one, I am not kidding! This chapter took so long to write because I had to keep changing things, adding, and switching things around. I promised you a doozy and here it is. Please let me know what you think and as always, enjoy!

P.S. Sorry about the weird indents but I write this on word on my laptop and then copy and paste it to Wattpad so that's why it does it.

As we enter the venue I take in the beautiful sight. Every year my parents outdo themselves when it comes to this ball. There are chandeliers hanging from the ceiling with a dozen round tables to the sides of the room, leaving a dance floor in the middle. There's a stage with a huge screen looking out onto the audience for the picture show my parents play every year. It's mainly just a list of all the charity's we donate to, as a selling point. At the moment the screen just shows a countdown to New Years.

    I look around and notice that Shawn isn't here yet. "I'm glad you told me to go with the silver tie. That dress looks so good on you." Dean says as he comes up to me and kisses my cheek.

    "You don't look so bad yourself." I complement as he pulls away.

    I turn to see Becca and Jenny staring at us, I need them to act normal. I know it's just because they care about me but if Dean finds out someone else knows, there's no telling how he'll react.

    "There's a lot more people here than last year." My mom says as she walks up with my dad in tow. I take note of her long coral colored dress, the bright color complements her olive skin tone.

    I nod, looking around at all of the familiar faces. Hunter Simmons makes eye contact for only a moment before quickly looking away. "I see a lot of people from school too." My parents started this fundraiser when I was in middle school and every year the turn around gets better.

    "Well, have fun. When Morgan gets here go ahead and show him to the back so you two can get ready." She then turns to Dean, "Thank you for being understanding when I asked him to do it."

    Dean smiles tightly, I told him on Christmas right in front of my parents. He had no choice but to be understanding, "Of course, Olivia."

    He excuses us and we begin to walk to the table where all of our friends are sitting. Jenny is laughing at something Jake said and Bee is fixing Luke's tie. "Hey guys, having fun yet?" I say as we take a seat.

    "I'll have even more fun when the waiter stops by with the champagne." Becca jokes as she eyes the waiter at the table across from us.

    "Bee our parents are here." Jenny reminds her just as she looks over at the table where her parents are. I follow her gaze to her sister Gina in a little pink dress.

    I look back at her sad expression, "Why don't you go say hi?" I ask, knowing how much she misses them.

    "Yeah, I'll be back." Jake holds her hand until she's too far away and we all watch as she walks over to her family. I can't hear what she's saying but her attention appears to be solely on Gina. Gina holds out her arms for Jenny to pick her up. Gina is only four but Jenny always talked about how close they were. I can't imagine how she must've felt over the holidays when she couldn't see her.

    She tries to talk to her parents but her mother takes one look at her stomach and looks away from her. Gina starts to cry so her dad pulls her from Jenny's embrace to calm her down. He doesn't talk to Jenny so she looks back at Jake with tears in her eyes. Jake leaves the table to go to Jenny as she walks away from her parents table.

    "Do you think she's going to be okay?" Bee asks, having also witnessed the whole thing.

    I look over to her, "I think she will."

    After a few minutes Jenny and Jake make their way back to the table as if nothing had happened. I grab her hand across the table, she looks up at me with sad eyes but smiles. "Hey, you know what I just thought of?" She says. "This is our last semester with all of us together." The thought makes me nostalgic, these past few years have been some of the best.

Even this year has had its moments. "I guess we better make it count." Becca says, looking directly at me. She knows that I'm going to make it count starting with Dean.

Dean leans in, "Are you hungry? We can get in line for the buffet." I look over the expensive set up with different stations for different foods.

    I nod, standing up and walking over to the line with Dean. "Oh my God," He says beside me.

    "What?" I ask as I try to figure out what he's looking at.

    "Mr. Morgan just walked in with a date." I turn my head to the entrance. Sure enough Shawn is standing there in a black suit and gold tie. Standing right beside him in a stunning red dress is Katherine.

    Her hand wraps around his arm as she looks around the unfamiliar group of people. To the naked eye she's extremely beautiful with long black hair and big stormy eyes that pop because of her eyeliner and red lipstick. To me I know who she is beyond the looks. I can't wrap my head around why he's here with her, he can barely stand her after what she did. I see my mom walk up to him and introduce herself to Katherine. I guess Katherine looks old enough not to raise any questions despite her only being nineteen. My mom points to me as Shawn meets my eyes. Shawn nods to my Mom and smiles so politely to her. When their conversation is over he begins walking up to me with Katherine.

    "Hello Livia, Dean." He greets but his eyes linger on me. "This is Katherine Dyer, my date."

    Katherine holds out her hand for Dean, "It's very nice to meet you." Her voice is sickly sweet, like she's openly flirting with Dean.

    "I didn't think you had a girlfriend Mr. Morgan." Dean smirks. "Good for you."

    "Yeah," I add. "Good for you."

    I tense as I look at her, I know Shawn and I aren't exactly together but I can't help the jealousy that bubbles inside of me. "Your mom said you were supposed to show me how to be an ambassador?" Shawn says, ignoring what Dean said to him.

    I nod in confirmation.

    "Later, let's dance first." Katherine says pulling on his arm slightly.

    Shawn looks a little uncomfortable but he reluctantly lets her drag him away. The line moves up and I notice Dean with his eyes still glued to Katherine. I hit his chest lightly, "Over here." I say, getting his attention.

    "Sorry." He mumbles, "Do you want to dance?" Dean holds out his hand for me to take.

    I laugh and point to the buffet, "I thought we were getting food?"

    Dean shakes his head as if to say, "Not anymore." Before taking my hand and dragging me to the middle of the dance floor.

    The song is slow and soft, causing us to sway and dance close. Dean's cologne is different from usual but I don't mention it. He wraps his arm around my waist as we move. Other couples like Jake and Jenny, Bee and Luke begin to meet us and dance together. I try not to look at Mr. Morgan but my eyes take control and I can't help myself. I take in a deep breath when I see that he's staring back at me. His deep green eyes remind me of every time he would meet my hazel ones and make me feel like the only girl in the world. This time is different, this time he's dancing with his ex.

    "Are you okay?" Dean whispers in my war.

    I move my chin up to see him, "Yeah, I'm just thinking."

    Dean smiles, "You think too much." I know it's not meant to be an insult but that's how I take it.

    Before I can respond I hear Katherine's voice beside me. "Do you mind if I steal your boyfriend for a moment?" It's just a dance but the way she asks makes it seem like so much more. Like this is her way of getting to me, but it's not going to work.

    "Sure." I say, knowing that means I'd be dancing with Shawn.

    With any other circumstances a student dancing with their teacher might be strange. However, this year my mom made us ambassadors so no one bats an eye.

    Katherine cuts in, letting Dean grab her waist and hand to dance. I don't trust her not to say anything to Dean but Shawn takes me hand before I can say anything. We're awkward at first, not entirely sure where our hands should go or if we should make eye contact. "Relax." He finally says to me. I take his advice and try to control my breathing to make things less weird between us. As I do, he slowly looks me up and down, "You look-"

    "Not here." I interrupt, the last thing we need is for people to hear him calling me beautiful.

    Shawn nods once, "You're wearing the necklace."

    "It matches your tie." I notice, "Katherine's dress is red." I wonder if it means he wanted to match me.

    He looks around to see if anyone is listening, "We should talk about why I brought her."

    I shake my head, "I don't care why."

    "Yes, you do. After everything I've told you about her you deserve an explanation." He's right, I do care but it doesn't make a difference. He brought her because she's the mother of his son.

I just don't want to hear him say it. "After this song. We have to get the props for when the fundraiser begins anyway."

Shawn draws his eyebrows together in confusion, "Props?"

I smile, "You'll see, it's nothing too crazy."

For the rest of the song we dance in silence. I pretend not to notice the way his hand grips around my waist or the intense proximity of him in front of most of the town.

Afterwards we excuse ourselves to get to the back where there are a few waiters and caterers in the area. I find the storage room and walk in with Shawn following close behind. He shuts the door as I begin to look through the racks. "My mom wants us to wear a New Year's sash but I don't know where she put them." I can feel Shawn watching my every move but I don't stop. "Then there's a hat where people put the checks in. We don't have to wear them, just walk around with them." I move over to the box on the table to see if they're in there.

    "Livia." He says.

    I look up, "He's your son isn't he?" I ask.

    Shawn sighs, "I don't know, that's not exactly why I brought her." He rubs the back of his neck as if to show he's uncomfortable with the topic. "She does have the results though, she paid to get them rushed over the holidays." I didn't even know that was possible but her family must be very well-off.

    "But you don't know what they say yet?" I ask.

    He stops rubbing his neck and straightens out, "When she walked in on us at the school I asked her what she wanted from me. She said all she wanted was a date and when she heard about this she said she wanted to go." I see, this wasn't something he wanted to do. Katherine must've been threatening to tell the school that she saw us together so he agreed to one date.

    "When is she giving you the results?"

    He takes a step closer to me, "Tonight, after the party." When the date is over. I don't know if that means good news or bad news.

Shawn then walks up to me, so close we could touch. I know everything has been off between us since Christmas break but I still care about him. I close the space between us, catching him off guard and wrapping my arms around his neck. He's surprised but eventually hugs me back, grabbing my waist and pulling me in even closer. We stay like that for a couple of minutes, completely silent just holding each other.

    Eventually I know that we have to get back out there so I pull away and smooth out my dress. I look on the second rack and find the sashes and hats. I hand Shawn one of each and exit the room before him. I check the time and see that we have a little less than ten minutes before my parents start the fundraiser.

When I make my way out I see Dean making his way back to the table with everyone else. "I need some fresh air, I'll be back." I dismiss myself and find the nearest exit.

    When I get outside I mentally curse myself for not bringing a jacket and wrap my arms around myself to keep somewhat warm. I hear footsteps beside me and turn to see Katherine walking up to me, "Your boyfriend is charming, I don't see how you could cheat on him." She says.

    "You don't know anything about me."

    "I know enough to know you're a lot like me." I laugh shortly, I'm nothing like her. "I fell in love with him too, I know what it's like. You know it's wrong but you can't get enough of him."

    I meet her gaze, "I'm not in love with him." At the moment I'm not even sure what love is. Still, she's right about the last part. I try not to let it get to me, she meant nothing to Shawn. At the same time, I'm not entirely sure what I mean to him either.

    "Sure you're not." She smiles, "I'm not the enemy here, I just wanted Kevin back."

    "Your son...is he Shawn's?"

    Her breath hitches, "He told you what happened?" I nod and watch as her shoulders drop. "I thought he was, I was so sure that I rushed the test. Turns out he's not and as soon as I give him the letter he's never going to want to see me again." I take in the news, it's not his. "Right before Kevin and I started messing around I hooked up with my ex." The timing still fits but I can't imagine how Shawn will react to this. 

    "Are you going to tell your ex?"

    "And ruin his life like I almost ruined Kevin's?" She shakes her head 'no' and begins to head inside, "Will you just promise me you'll let me tell him?" She asks. Her eyes are filled with something a lot similar to mine but I pretend not to notice.

    I know I don't owe her any favors but I still agree, "Sure." She smiles sadly at me and turns to walk back inside.

    As I walk in behind her I pray that this is the last I'll see of Katherine. She moves to take a seat at the table while I watch my parents on the stage in front of the microphone. I hurry up to the side of the stage with Shawn. My dad begins, "Welcome to our fifth annual New Year's Ball. It's so nice to see our community coming together in order to help others. As usual I would like to introduce our ambassadors that will be coming around to collect checks to a charity of your choice. Our first ambassador is my daughter, Livia Gardner." Everyone looks at me so I wave and smile, "And Brookview's new history teacher, Shawn Morgan." Everyone claps as we begin to walk around with the hats in our hands, Shawn follows me to every table as my mom takes over the mic.

    "We're going to start by playing a video of all the charity's we donated to last year. This tape was put together by a senior at Brookview High, Hunter Simmons, Please enjoy." The video begins to play as I move on to my third table.

    "Hey Livia." Mr. Cooper says to me as he puts a check in my hat.

    I've hardly seen him at all this year, "Hey, Mr. Cooper. It's nice to see you. What charity are you donating to?" I ask.

Shawn is right behind me, collecting from the other people at the table. "To the TESSA organization." He says.

I tilt my head at him, "I'm sorry I'm not familiar with that one."

"It's a community in Denver against domestic abuse. Dean's mother works at the one in California." I'm very surprised by his choice of donation after what Eve told me.

"I think that's amazing." I say quickly before moving on to the next table.

"I didn't see that one coming." Shawn says beside me.

    The next table are Jenny's parents and Gina along with Becca's parents. They both place checks in our hats. Mr. Pierson, Jenny's father, looks up at me softly, "How are you, Livia?" He asks. I look up to Mrs. Pierson with Gina, not paying attention to us.

    "I'm good, have you asked how Jenny is lately?" I inquire quietly so that her mom doesn't hear me. I can imagine she's the main part of the problem.

    He looks shocked at my forwardness, "Um, no."

    "You really should because as much as she puts on a brave face, she's pregnant and scared. The people she loves most in the world have completely shut her out." I know Shawn is looking at me but I don't stop. "The truth is Jenny misses you guys, and how you don't miss an amazing person like her back, is beyond me." At this point the whole table has their eyes on me so I straighten out, "Thanks for the donation." I say before making my way to the next table. As much as I assume he will, Shawn doesn't say anything. I don't know if I've helped anything or made it worse but Jenny deserves so much more.

We finish up and make our way back to the side of the stage where our hats are taken to send the checks off. Everyone's eyes are on the video where various charities are still being distributed on the screen. I look over to Shawn, he's looking down at me.

Suddenly everyone gasps and I hear my voice on the speakers.

"Dean, I don't want to go yet. The dance isn't even over." I look up to the video on the screen. It's no longer charities but a video of Dean and I in the parking lot, the night of the masquerade.

"No, you can't drive. You've been drinking."

    Dean grabs at the strands of his hair and pulls before yelling, "Just shut the fuck up!"

    "Oh my God, Livia." Shawn says beside me as he watches what the entire town is watching. 

    "Dean what's wrong?" I cried.

    "You think I wouldn't find out? Becca told me that you went with him."

    I didn't know there was anyone outside. "What are you talking about?" Just as I say that Dean comes up to me and grabs my waist so that I'm forced to look at him.

    "I'm talking about you acting completely different all year."

    I shake my head as it continues to play, "No, someone has to stop this!"

    But it doesn't stop, the video keeps going exactly how it happened. "I am a virgin Dean, you're acting crazy you have to know that." I try to remain calm but my voice is shaky.

    I wince at how hard his hands are grabbing my waist but he doesn't seem to notice. "You're right." Without a word he puts his lips on mine angrily and I move my head around, there is no way I'm going to kiss him like this. "You won't even kiss me now?" He scoffs.

    His hands tighten on me, "You're drunk and you're hurting me." I say as tears fall down my face.

    "I can't watch this," I say as I look away. Shawn's hand comes up to touch my shoulder, he's trying to comfort me but I just feel sick.

    "If you're not going to give me what I want then I'll find someone who will." He states as he pushes me down causing me to hit the car and fall to the ground. I scream in pain, trying to catch my breath.

    Dean walks to the other side of the car and gets in starting it up, "No, you can't drive!" I yell but my voice comes out hoarse. He backs up and speeds out of the school parking lot leaving me behind.

    The video ends there, and everyone turns to both Dean and I. "I don't understand." My mom says from the stage. She's standing close to the microphone so everyone can hear her clearly.

    "You son of a bitch!" My dad yells as he tries to rush off of the stage to get to Dean.

    As soon as his feet hit the floor Shawn is quick to stop him, "Hey stop!" He says, holding my dad back, "You don't want to do this, trust me."

    "Get the fuck off of me!" He yells as his face turns red from anger but it's not towards Shawn, he's looking straight at Dean. "I brought you into