Once again, Mom ropes me into yoga. Shaun manages to escape, claiming tomorrow's test more important than an hours workout, to which she eventually relents, though gives no illusions about me getting out of it. So, I do the only thing I can in this situation. I call Jasmine.

Now, here we are. Face down, ass up. Exhaling away our daily stresses.

"Great downward dog, ladies!" praises Mom doing her rounds. "Last position. Child's pose."

Jasmine effortlessly slides into the new position, elongating her spine in the perfect stretch. Me? I'm sure I manage it far less gracefully.

"Wanna grab a hot chocolate after this?" I ask, stretching my arms forwards. "I'm in the mood for some sugar."

"Sure! Anything that isn't liquidised kale," she replies, pulling a face. "Lucile is on another health kick."

Lucile–her older sister–is three days into her one week study leave from college and is apparently making Jasmine's life miserable.

"In that case, you absolutely must get whipped cream and marshmallows."

She smirks. "Duh!"

Mom finishes the session and thanks her usual crowd for coming. Jasmine and I attempt to quietly slip out but are stopped in our doing so by a group of interfering women.

"You go to school with Sienna Michaels, right?" One of them asks.

Jasmine steps up. "Umm...we did, yeah."

"Is it true she broke up with her boyfriend the day she was killed?"

What?

"That's news to me," shrugs Jasmine. "Helena?"

"I've not heard that," I offer, stepping aside to let some people exit. "Probably just rumours."

Or, is it?

"Well, you girls be careful. It's not safe out there."

We politely smile and side-step out of the studio, onto the freezing cold pavement. I wrap my arms around my front, shielding myself from the slight wind that has picked up. Luckily, the coffee shop is only a short walk away and offers refuge from the cold temperatures.

"Two hot chocolates?" asks the waitress, dumping both mugs onto our table once we nod.

I immediately spoon some cream into my mouth, enjoying the sweetness.

"How's the investigation going?" asks Jasmine, chewing a marshmallow.

"Good. Kinda. It's harder than it looks," I admit.

She smiles.

"But Sienna breaking up with Lewis is another clue."

"Be careful. Gossip isn't always factual," she insists.

"But it's a possibility, right? That she broke up with him the day she was killed?"

Jasmine nods. "I guess."

My phone vibrates against my thigh and I wait with berated breath to see if Jasmine gets a text too. Thankfully, she doesn't.

Elliot:
Hey!

Helena:
Hi :)

Elliot:
You ok?

Helena:
All good. You?

"Who are you texting?" asks Jasmine, quirking a brow.

"Shaun," I quickly reply.

She nods.

Elliot:
I am now.

"Actually, it's not Shaun," I admit. "It's a boy."

"Oh?"

Her interests are immediately peaked.

"Who?

I shrug. "Can we leave names out of it for now?"

"Of course," she replies. "You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to."

I smile. "He's helping me."

"With the investigation?"

I nod.

"Is he a cop?"

"God, no!" Not yet, I silently add.

"Well, you better text him back," she advises, pointing towards my phone on the table. "You don't want to keep him waiting."

I do as I'm told and pick up my cell, unable to hide the huge smile on my face as I type out my reply.

Helena:
What are you
doing later?

****

****

Elliot picks me up outside my house five hours later, sporting dark jeans and a leather jacket. A grey beanie sits casually atop his head, protecting him against tonight's brutal chill. Around his neck hangs a navy blue scarf, tucked neatly into his collar. He looks warm. Sophisticated. Nice.

"Hey."

His grin is contagious.

"Hi."

I meet him at the bottom of my drive and guide him right, towards the main road.

"I like your lips," he claims, blushing immediately afterwards. "I-I mean your lipstick. I like the colour of your lipstick."

I laugh. "Thanks."

We continue on our way, stopping upon reaching our destination.

"Sorry. I would've picked you up in my car, only, I don't have one."

"That's okay." I smile. "I don't mind taking the bus."

"It's not okay, Helena. You look freezing."

We huddle in the bus shelter, bumping shoulders. "Don't worry about that. I'm always freezing."

He encourages me closer and rubs my arms, continuously doing so until the bus arrives. When it stops, he pulls away.

"Two tickets to Southfield, please," he asks, pulling out a twenty.

I desperately want to pay for us but refrain from offering, not wanting to insult him. He'll know I was eavesdropping the other day if I suddenly admit to knowing he has money issues and the last thing I want is for him to not trust me.

"Where d'ya wanna sit?" he enquires, handing me my ticket.

"The back?" I suggest, leading us there. Once seated, I brave my next question. "Can I pay for the cinema tickets?"

He blushes and looks down, suddenly fixated on his shoes. "You don't have to. I have money."

"I know you do."

He looks up, meeting my gaze. "Mom sends us some once a month," he explains. "It's not much but I'm a good saver."

"Me too," I reply. "My Dad thinks that just because he writes me a check every month end, I'm to love him unconditionally."

"You don't live with him?" he asks. "Your dad?"

"No. He left when I was a baby."

There's a moment of silence before he scoffs. "It's bullshit! Parents are supposed to love us, no matter what. Not leave when the going gets tough."

"Exactly!" I agree. "So let tonight be on them. Your shitty Mom can pay for our bus fare. And my cheating dad can pay for our cinema tickets. It's the least they can do!"

He laughs, finally relaxing. "Yeah, okay. That seems fair."

I lean back in my seat. "Hey, Elliot..."

"Yeah?"

"Money is money," I tell him. "Don't let anyone make you feel ashamed for not having any."

He smiles and pulls out his earphones, offering my the right bud. I'm curious to see what music he listens to and am pleasantly surprised when Wolves by Selena Gomez plays in my ear. This is his reply. His way of expression.

I've been running through the jungle,
I've been running with the wolves,
To get to you. To get to you.

I'm moved by the lyrics, feeling their relevance more than ever. Yes, Shaun and Jasmine are my best friends but I've never had someone for myself. Just for me. And after a measly five days with Elliot, I'm astonished by our friendship.

This time last week, I hated him. Or, at least I thought I hated him. Because of Jasmine. Now, we're working on a murder investigation together and bitching about bad parents. It's nice. Comforting. Thrilling.

"Oh, I might've found out something in my Mom's yoga class today."

"Wait! Hold up," he demands. "Your Mom teaches yoga?"

I smirk. "Yes."

"Wow."

"Anyway..." I steer us back on track. "Some of the women there seem to think Sienna broke things off with Lewis the day she died."

"On Valentine's Day? Ouch."

I nod. "Maybe she found out about him and Chloe?"

"But if that were true, why kill her? And how does that connect with Tom?"

The truth? I have absolutely no idea. I've been thinking about this all day. About Sienna and Tom. And how they're linked. I just can't seem to make sense of it.

"I'm not sure. Maybe we should talk to them."

"Who? Chloe and Lewis?"

I nod.

"How?"

"I dunno? Maybe I can talk to Chloe and you can talk to Lewis?" He doesn't seem entirely onboard. "Don't look so terrified. You'll be fine. You're charming enough."

He laughs. "You think I'm charming?"

"Sure."

He grins, awfully pleased with himself.

"Besides, you're a future cop. Think of it as practice."

He shrugs. "I do play football with Lewis..."

"There you go. Perfect opportunity. Offer him a shoulder to cry on."

The bus pulls into Southfield station, prompting us both to move. We exit the building and walk the short distance to the cinema, finalising our plan as we do.

"I read this thing on body language once. If people can't make eye contact, it usually means they're lying," he informs. "Be sure to look out for that."

"What? When I'm attempting girl talk with Chloe Peters." I shudder at the thought. "I'm terrible at girl talk."

"You do it with Jasmine all the time."

"Hardly!"

"Really?"

I stop walking. "She's dating my brother, Elliot. I'm not exactly fangirling over the details of their sex life."

He laughs. "Does it bother you?"

"Does what bother me?"

"That she's dating Shaun?"

I carry on walking. "Not at all, they're perfect together." I pause. "Does it bother you?"

Now it's his turn to stop walking. "Why would it bother me?"

I shrug. "Because you're Jasmine's ex."

I tense as the silence stretches between us. Truth be told, this has been bothering me for a few days now. I can't work out whether Elliot still has feelings for my best friend. And I know they only dated for a short while but it's still a possibility. Perhaps those feelings are hard to switch off?

"Helena, Jasmine and I were hardly in an established relationship."

"You still dated," I protest, looking at anything but him.

He takes hold of my shoulders and forces my gaze to lock with his. "It doesn't bother me. Not one bit."

I grin. "You didn't look away."

"Huh?"

I point to his face. "You kept eye contact. Which means you were telling the truth."

He flashes me a smirk and shoves on my arm. "You're sumthin' else, Helena Gallagher."

I push him back. "And never forget it."

****

Ahhhh, cute!!

Alright thoughts! Who killed Sienna?