My eyes sweep Gina's from wall to wall behind the cheetah print sunglasses Merina made me use to conceal my identity. The blond wig does a poor job hiding my wavy, dark brown hair, which's strands poke out contrasting ridiculously with the shiny plastic wig I'm wearing as it is several tones lighter than my actual hair color. It is a tacky platinum blond, just for you to picture it better.

I removed the cap a few minutes ago as I started to sweat like a pig. It was hard convincing my dear best friend to let me leave school without the sweatshirt that fitted me like I was enveloped in plastic wrap.

Merina entered the place a couple of minutes before I did. She gave me a lift from school and dropped me two blocks before the diner to avoid any witnesses. Some would say drama queens, I'd say we're just being cautious.

I sip on my glass of water and my eyes rake once more over the place's features. Pastel yellow paint coats the walls, black and white tiles decor the floor making it look like a chessboard. Metallic tables are scattered all over the place and booths covered with faux red leather are occupied with several customers. A colorful jukebox sits in the corner of the place emitting a song that gives away its epoch.

Gina's has always been a popular hang-out spot among high school students, it's almost considered a landmark in town now.

I catch Merina's gaze and she looks like she's about to get up from her seat when the bell above the door dings loudly and a guy we both know very well comes inside.

Kyle Evans scans the place before coming up to the bar beside me, I tense up and turn to the other side.

"Two chocolate milkshakes please," His smooth voice reaches my ears making me tense even more. Should I bolt to the restroom until he leaves? I look around to see if he's with the whole gang, more specifically one with a pair of gorgeous brown eyes but he's here alone.

Omgg, what do I do? should I hide in the restroom?, I text Meri and my phone chimes right away.

Yeah, ill tell u when 2 come out

I tuck my cell in the back pocket of my jeans, adjust the hideous wig on my head and run to the restroom. Once inside I lean my back against the door and sigh in relief. I take the wig off and go to the faucet to splash some water on my hair and face.

God, if my mother knew what I was doing right now...

Should I take a sneak peek to see if Kyle is already gone? Meri hasn't texted but I feel stupid hiding in the restroom, more stupid than being out there looking like a complete idiot wearing hideous sunglasses indoors.

I march up to the door and stop dead in my tracks as I take in the sign plastered on the door. A standard blue male figure stands in the door and I look around perplexed to find those weird looking toilets embedded on the wall. But of course, this would happen to me.

How didn't I notice them before? Am I really that stupid?

Should I go out and risk someone coming in at the same time and seeing me? Or, should I stay in a couple of minutes more? Shit, now this is embarrassing and this is exactly why I don't like doing crazy stuff!

Suddenly, the door starts to rattle with movement from the other side. My time is out.

I rush to get inside a stall and close the door forcefully not without trapping my finger in the process. I yelp and finally throw the lock and exhale profusely, then turn to examine my hand. Fuck, that hurt.

"Hey man, are you okay?" I tense up and my throat constricts and I struggle to talk back. Should I respond? He thinks I'm a dude! of course he would think I'm a dude, I'm in the men's restroom, but I can't talk like a man!

I clear my throat before letting out the manliest voice I could muster up on the spot. "Yeah, man. I-I'm cool,"

He chuckles and I blush, maybe he knows I'm lying... He definitely does! Why would he be laughing at me if not because of that? Oh shit, it could be someone from school!

"Fucking in the diner's bathroom bro? Classy,"

"What?!" This time it is my own voice that comes out and I get redder on the face and I feel it creeping all the way up to the tips of my ears and down to my neck.

"My lips are sealed guys, but would you give me your number, sweetheart?"

"Go fuck yourself!" I shout and the fucking idiot goes out the door laughing to himself. I let out a mortified wail and take out my phone to text Merina.

What the hell is happening out there? He hasn't left?

I wait for Meri's response for a few minutes and I start to feel really uncomfortable as I listen in to other guys' conversations as the pee together in the weird toilets. They all talk about the next "chick" they'll "fuck", how wasted they got in the last party and about how much their dream car costs and how much time it will take them to make up that much money with a minimum wage paying job in town.

After what felt like ten hours, Merina's response chimes.

U can come out

I sigh heavily and open the door slowly to avoid anyone discovering me. There is no one in the restroom so I march up to the door leading to the diner, not before putting on my sunglasses and doing the same drill. I hope I don't encounter the pervy boy from before, it'll be really awkward.

Meri waves me over to her table and I oblige. Once I reach the table, I sit in the cushion in front of her and take off the itchy thing from hell from my head. "So, what happened? Did the blackmailer came?"

"Indeed, he came," She clenches her jaw as she recalls her encounter.

"Oh God, so it's a he? I can't believe it! Why would a dude want to- And why didn't you tell me? I wanted to be there to kick ass. To-"

"Its Kyle,"

"blackmail someone its the lowest... wait, what?!"

"It's Kyle, Blair. He sent that picture," Merina looks furiously at me and my own anger flourishes instantly.

"What the fuck for? What does he want? After everything he did, he comes back to push you to do something for him like that?" I'm so irate right now. That shitbag... that piece of scum should've rotten in hell a long time ago.

Let me get you in context. Kyle and Merina were best friends a long time ago, even before I came into the picture. We were all friends once, but ever since Kyle started to hang around Cole, he became more distant with us. Merina's parents were very close to his and albeit that, he stopped acknowledging even them.

All of a sudden we weren't cool enough for his majesty and once he had the audacity to say it to Merina's face during middle school, their relationship as best friends broke for good.

Merina was so sad when that happened. She lost her best friend and something more. I've always known that there was more than a mere friendship, I had the feeling they both loved each other but were too afraid to say it and ruin everything they had.

Obviously, I thought that until he did that motherfuckency of deeming himself to cool to hang around us. Now I think he's just another apple that has sadly rotten in the hands of the assholes.

"Oh but that's not all, B. He had the nerve to buy me a chocolate milkshake! As if everything between us was so cool and dandy!"

A chocolate milkshake would've meant nothing for anyone, but for them, it was like a sacred, meaningful ritual. One that I must admit I was jealous of when I was younger. Whenever they got mad at each other, they'd fix everything up treating each other to one of the famous Gina's milkshakes.

"It was like he was offering it just to appease me and let him talk about all this nonsense of dating him-"

"Whaaaaat?!" I screech loudly and earn many annoyed glances from people that seat in the tables nearby. I couldn't help it.

"Wait! Okay, let me tell you from the start," She takes in a deep breath and exhales before starting her tale. "So when you ran to the restrooms I saw that he was taking his sweet time at the bar and I immediately discarded him from a suspect list, but then he approached and started making small talk. I asked him what was his deal and then he was like 'So I'll just assume you received my text.' I fucking blinded with anger and I wanted to scream and punch him in the face and then he told me to chill! HE TOLD ME TO CHILL, BLAIR!"

"Mer, would you get to the point?"

She glares at me but continues her story. "My point is that then he offered the milkshake and you know what the milkshake meant, right?" I nod my head and she continues. "I'm just so mad and hurt that he offered it without any meaning or sorry behind... It was just to build a temporary bridge to Merina-Land to get me to fake-date him to get rid of a girl that is supposedly clinging to him like a leech," She rolls her eyes.

"Like you fucking care," I exclaim and then a mother sitting with her children in the table nearby looks menacingly at me. "Sorry, ma'am,"

"Well, I have to care here because he said if I don't cooperate, he will send everyone that picture and post it everywhere," Merina fumes and I feel ny chest lighting up in fury but draw in some air and try to think rationally.

"Do you think he'd go through with it?" Part of me wants to kick me in the head for making that question, but I can't help but hope that there's still some part of  the Kyle we knew behind all that facade. I doubt he could be even more heartless to break an already broken bridge that was once very important for him.

"He said I have until Monday to tell him if I'm in," She says matter-of-factly with dead-set eyes resting upon mine and that is when I know that Merina is taking his threat very seriously.

I'm about to tell her that maybe is her hurt that is driving her to expect the worst from Kyle, but contain myself because if he was capable of taking that picture, of scheming such twisted plan and having the balls to reach Mer in such a jackass-y way, maybe he was indeed capable of sending those pictures. You never truly get to know a person until they're in their worst situations and you have to witness the way they cope with their circumstances.

Kyle was presented with Cole and he simply decided to follow the current instead of fighting against it. That was the way he reacted, the way he coped, but I believe it cost him more than what he received in return.

"And what are you going to do?" I ask her as I try to imagine myself in her shoes. I'm a chicken so I think I'd do it definitely, but not before having the picture deleted.

Have some more pride Blair, you give in too easily. My subconscious reprimands me. If I was Merina I'd be crying in the corner already, I don't know what I'd choose.

Meri sighs heavily and looks like she's about to cry. "I don't know what to think. For starters, I can't even believe it's Kyle." She laughs humorlessly and sobs as two tears escape from each of her eyes.

"Oh, darling, don't cry over that fucking idiot," I coo and go to sit beside her. I hug her and she laughs sadly. "He's not worth it, you know?"

"I know, it still hurts, though. I don't want it to hurt because is him we're talking about, I shouldn't give a fuck after all he's done but I hate it that he still finds a way to fuck it all up,"

"It's okay, Meri... It's okay," I pet her head while I continue to hold her when out on nowhere, my light bulb goes on and I jump away leaving a startled Merina in place.

"I have a brilliant idea!" I exclaim and smile giddily to myself while rubbing my hands diabolically.

"What are you-?"

"You obviously remember Liam, don't you?" I recline myself against the table, my master plan driving me over the edge of my eagerness.

"How could I not?" Merina rolls her eyes but starts to smile again remembering her little crush.

"Well, he's a pretty decent guy and I think that with a little convincing here and there he could do something for us..."

"What?" She looks confused.

"He could steal Kyle's phone!" Merina frowns skeptically but I continue. "Think about it! We wouldn't be risking ourselves, it'll look totally natural that he takes his phone to 'make a call' or whatever because they're friends, he can delete the picture!"

"You think he would help? What about the bro code?"

"Bro code?"

"Yes, silly, Liam is not going to help us take down his friend, that's rules guys have," Merina rolls her eyes and I do the same. Boys are stupid.

"I think Liam's got more integrity than that," I want it badly to be true, anyway.

"I don't know, B," Merina scratches behind her head. The only thing to indicate her indecision further would be a line running right through the middle of her body with one side saying 'YES LET'S DO IT' and the other saying 'IS BLAIR CRAZY?'

"Come on! I'm already befriending him, give me until Friday to get closer to him and he will steal Kyle's phone by Monday, it can work. It will work," I try ti assure Merina with my gaze and she ponders over what I said quietly until resolve paints her face with a smug expression and says

"Fine, let's take down that bitch," We rise from our seats and high-five each other.

*****

Hello, darlings!!! How have you been? I've been so busy lately, high school is no joke here lol. Thanks for your patience! I know this is a shorter chapter but I hope it is still a good one.

Did you expect Kyle to be behind all this? What do you think about his history with Merina? You think Liam's going to help them or is he going to stick to the bro-code?

Also, there's a picture of the gorgeous Lucky Blue Smith who I picture as Kyle.

Comment, vote and share! Let me know what you think!! I hope to upload the next chapter in maybe two weeks, but I don't want to get your hopes up, so... bear with me, please.

P.D.: Who wants more of Reid?

Thank you all! love you!!

-P.S.