The principal let all the boys off the hook with a warning because of Ace. If he punished everyone but him then all the other rich dads will be here tomorrow. So, he made no big deal out of it.

Ace came outside and found Ella waiting for him.

"Let's go," he said to her

The whole car ride, they made small talk about the fight, about Hunter. He'd use his phone periodically, but she didn't dare question him or peek at his phone. Fifteen minutes later, they reached her house and she stepped out of the car.

"Bye, Ace" she smiled but he mumbled a quick bye without looking at her and drove to his place.

Ella's mother came rushing towards her.

"Mom, what happened?"

"How was school, baby?" she asked rubbing her palms together.

"Fine, mom, are you okay?" Ella asked confused

"Baby, you need to be strong, okay?" Her mother approached her and rubbed her upper arms.

Ella got terrified. "What? Why? Mom, what happened? Where's dad?"

"Your dad is fine" she answered and Ella ran inside.

She halted in her steps and gasped. "Elliot, Elliot!" Tears filled up in her eyes. She saw her dog lying on the ground with blood leaking out of his mouth.

"No! Elliot" her bottom lip quivered, and her shoulders dropped in resignation. She fell on her knees beside his lifeless body and pulled him towards hers.

"Elliot, baby, wake up, please" She cried

Her parents sat beside her on the ground, rubbing her back, hugging her.

"How? What happened to him?"

"He was old, honey" Matthew comforted his daughter.

"No! NO!" She hugged her dog's lifeless body.

"Please, wake up, Elliot" she sobbed harder than before.

"I'll prepare a funeral for him" Matthew kissed her forehead.

Ella was depressed, she wasn't talking. She wasn't eating. She stood at the side lifelessly. She loved that dog. Her father brought him home when she was two years old. She grew up with that dog.

All her friends came to the funeral except for Ace. Axel and Zoe kept comforting her. They told her to eat something but she didn't. Every two seconds her eyes would tear up and she would cry.

They buried him in their backyard. Her father turned his grave into a shrine. He framed his collar and toys for Ella.

Ace came later that night. He casually strolled in and side-hugged Ella. "I am sorry for your loss," he said and she nodded.

"Ace, tell her to eat something. She hasn't eaten since this morning" Zoe said

"Why?" Ace asked confused

"Um... Her dog died" Chris said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, but what's the point of not eating anything?" Ace asked

"I don't want to..." She said and started to cry again.

Ace groaned annoyed. "God! Ella, it was just a dog. I'll get you another one. It's not a big deal" Ace snapped heartlessly

Ella sobbed even harder and left for her room.

"Ace, that was so unsympathetic" Axel snapped

"Geez, all this for a fucking dog. Good riddance, by the way, I hated that dog" Ace said and got up to leave. "Fucking, waste of time" he mumbled and went back to his house. His cellphone vibrated and a smile crept on his lips when he saw the name on the screen.

⊱⋅ ⋅⊰
Veronica:

I'm bored, wanna hang out?
⊱⋅ ⋅⊰

⊱⋅ ⋅⊰
Ace:

Finally! I would love to.
⊱⋅ ⋅⊰

Ace met up with Veronica at a local cafe. He told her about Ella's dog.

"She's being a drama queen, that's all," he told her

She laughed. "Dogs are disgusting creatures. I am more of a cat person"

"You should have seen hers. It was old and shed hair everywhere" he cringed.

"Well, it was still her pet" she shrugged

"You know what? I am glad we did this but if I hear one more time about that dog, I'll fucking explode!" he said

They laughed and made jokes. Ace enjoyed spending time with her. She had class and she was interesting. Ace admired the way she ate or talked or walked. She was different from Ella in every aspect. Why am I comparing her to Ella? He thought.

She didn't whine about her problems. She wasn't clingy. She is fun-loving and open-minded.

Ace didn't want their date to end. He took her to a park. They hung out at the park late till night. She sat on the swing and he pushed her. It was a fun, cute intimate little date.

Ace dropped her home. He walked her to her door and out of nowhere, she pulled him in for a kiss. Ace was caught off guard. He circled his arms around her waist. She pushed him into a nearby wall.

He picked her up and placed his hands under her butt as she wrapped her legs around his waist. He exchanged their position so that she was the one between him the wall. Ace squeezed her butt and she moaned into his mouth. He slowly slid his hand under her shirt and caressed her sides. His hands trailed further up but she stopped him.

"Not so fast" she whispered on his lips. It made Ace crazier for her.

The only girl he ever had sex with was Ella and she was so easy but not Veronica. To him, it was like she had some power over him. He found that sexy and enticing. He was captivated by her. Veronica always left him asking for more.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

Someone knocked on the door and Ella wiped her tears.

"Come in" she croaked out

"Ella, your friend is here" her mother informed her.

Ella got up and washed her face. She slowly stepped down the stairs and saw Hunter Grey sitting in her living room with flowers in his hands.

Her eyes were swollen and red. Her cheeks and nose were all puffy. She was wearing her pajamas. She had no traces of makeup on her face, her hair was a mess but she still managed to take Hunter's breath away.

He cleared his throat. "I am so sorry for your loss," he said softly. "Your friends were talking about it and I overheard," he said and Ella nodded. She was in no mood to talk.

"This is for Elliot" he raised the flowers.

"Follow me," she said and took him to Elliot's grave. She didn't know why she took him there, they weren't friends. They didn't even know each other. Hunter placed the flowers on his grave and saw his picture on the tombstone.

"A Siberian Husky," he said and Ella nodded. "You wanna talk about?" Hunter offered. 

Her chin trembled and she fell to the ground. She cried again for half an hour and all this time Hunter stayed by her side.

"He was my best friend," she said slowly and sniffled.  "He was so protective of me. One time, dad and I were arguing and he heard. He jumped on dad to save me" she talked about all the tiny little things that were weighing on her heart. She talked for two hours mindlessly and he carefully listened to every word.

"You must think I am crazy. You can make fun of me if you want" she said nonchalantly.

"No, Ella, I'd never. Losing your pet is a big deal especially the one you grew up with. I lost my turtle a year ago and I cried for two whole days"

She laughed lightly. "So, I am not weird"

"No, it's okay to grieve over your pet" he hesitantly placed his hand on hers and squeezed it.

Her breath hitched. "I think you should go now" she mumbled pulling her hand away.

"Yeah," he said disappointedly. He could listen to her talk all night long. They both stood up and she walked her to the door.

"See you at school," he said

She nodded. "Yes, and thank you" she smiled and closed the door.

For one whole week, she stayed in her room, didn't talk to anybody. She felt a little better after talking about Elliot with Hunter. A weight was lifted from her chest, it felt like she could breathe again.

Ace was her boyfriend. He should be here with her. He never even called. Ace didn't visit her after that day. She called him multiple times but when he picked up he told her not to call him until she's done whining about her fucking dog.

She woke up and dressed for school. She strolled downstairs lazily. She still didn't want to go back to school but she had to. She had breakfast with her parents and texted Ace.

⊱⋅ ⋅⊰
Ella:

You picking me for school today?
⊱⋅ ⋅⊰

She wasn't sure if he would because they hadn't talked all week. Her phone beeped and she hurriedly unlocked it.

⊱⋅ ⋅⊰
Ace:

Sorry, El, can't today. Didn't know you were coming back. I left already.
⊱⋅ ⋅⊰

⊱⋅ ⋅⊰
Ella:

Oh, it's okay. I'll ask dad.
⊱⋅ ⋅⊰

She bit on her lips as tears threatened to fall. Nowadays even the smallest thing made her cry.

"Dad, can you drop me off at school today?" She asked

"Aren't you going with Ace?" Matthew asked

She shook her head. "Um... No, he forgot. I think he already left for school"

"Sure, honey. You know I can buy you your own car" Matthew smiled warmly.

"Dad, I can't drive. You know that" she smiled sadly

"It's okay, honey. It's alright"

"I am done with my breakfast, let's go," she said picking up her bag and strolling out of the house

She waited for her dad outside. The huge gate of Harding's mansion opened and she saw Ace. He was still at home? He got into his car and raced down the road.

And

A/N
Hey, My Lovelies!
Here's another update.
The new updating schedule is Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Comment, Vote, and Share.
I hope you like it!
The next update will be on Wednesday.
Till then...
XOXO, Jane Doe!  ❤