“That is precisely the problem,” my dad says as he clears his throat then looks to Todd’s dad for reassurance. Mr. H. nods his head, but there is some reservation. Maybe this is more my parents than his.

“What does that mean?” I finally find my voice. “It’s a problem that we love each other?” I look up at Todd. “He is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. He protects me; he saved my life at the pool; he was the one person who helped me through Brian and Gretchen’s accident; and he got into a fight to defend me.”

Ryan is motioning for me to stop from behind my parents. “You are not helping,” he mouths to me.

With that, I lose whatever strength I have, and I feel my tears start to well up. Todd pulls me in closer to both comfort me and give our parents a sign that we are unbreakable. Then I feel his hand slide down my arm, and my dad’s eyes zero in on that action.

“Maybe we were unclear the first time. This is not a question; this is a command,” my dad says through gritted teeth.

“Dad, don’t you think you’re being unreasonable?” Ryan speaks up, and in this moment, I couldn’t love him more. Please, listen to Ryan.

Dad slowly turns to face Ryan. “Excuse me? This does not concern you, Ryan.”

“It does, Dad. She’s my sister, and he’s my best friend. I know she broke curfew and rules tonight, and I know Todd shouldn’t have gotten into a fight with Casey last night.”

At that name, Mr. H. stiffens, and my mom gasps. She loves Casey.

“You didn’t tell me that’s who it was. Have you lost your mind? You know what his family tried to do the last time.”

My mom and dad glance at each other with questioning looks. They don’t know much about the Casey situation. To them, he’s the boy who got me to swim again, and that’s it.

Todd notices my parents’ reaction and immediately shuts down the conversation. It took him forever to tell me the whole story; therefore, I know he doesn’t want to get into it with my parents, especially since they are currently not his biggest fans.

“Not now, Dad. It doesn’t matter. It’s not important.”

Mr. H. reads his son perfectly and stops the questioning, for which I am grateful.

“My point is,” Ryan jumps back in, “I hated the idea of them together, but they are good together. Great even. They are better together. And trust me; it pains me to say this.” He smiles.

I quickly try to wipe my tears away while all eyes are on Ryan.

“They are teenagers; they are going to make ‘bad decisions’,” Ryan quotes our parents, “but they protect each other and love each other, and that’s hard to find”—his smile deepens—“especially in high school.” I can tell he’s proud of himself. I half expect him to jump up on our coffee table to add extra emphasis to his speech.

I give him a head nod and a smile.

“Thank you for that, but…” my dad says, and the parents all glance at each other. Todd’s dad shrugs and nods, my mom turns away, and my dad turns his full attention back to us. “…that doesn’t change our decision. I’m sorry, but it’s over. Todd needs to concentrate on colleges and scholarships, and you need to concentrate on school and swimming. Ashley, you are too young for this relationship, to be this serious with a boy. It’s done.”

I feel my heart literally break. My chest feels like it’s caving in. Todd’s hand skims my arm, and then he pulls it away without saying anything. He doesn’t look at me, his dad, my parents, or even Ryan. He only turns and walks away, pushing through my front door and slamming it harder than I think anyone ever has, rattling all the pictures on the wall.

I can’t make eye contact with anyone. My eyes are so filled with tears I can barely see through them. I don’t know what to say, what to do. I want to run after Todd, but I know that won’t solve anything; just get us in more trouble.

I push past my parents, and I’m almost to the stairs when Ryan grabs my arm.

“Ashley …”

I pull away. “Don’t!” I scream at him for no reason other than he’s the only person in the room I actually can scream at.

I hate everyone.

I hear Ryan shout at my parents, “What do you think I was doing when I was fifteen? This is crazy!” Then the front door slams again.

TODD

I’m so mad I can’t see straight. I feel blindsided. Sure, I knew I would get in trouble, maybe grounded, but to force us to break up? That thought never even crossed my mind.

I’m in my car, unaware of how I got here. I can’t look at my father without punching or screaming at him, so my car is probably the safest place right now.

I slam my fist into the steering wheel since I can’t slam it into my dad’s face, but I instantly regret it as searing pain slices through my hand. It’s still bruised and scabbed from last night, and I’m pretty sure I just re-opened the wounds. I see my blood, but it doesn’t register; I don’t feel it. I can’t feel anything. I vowed I would never hurt Ashley again, would never leave her, and now I’m being forced to do just that. It doesn’t make sense. Nothing makes sense.

Every time I close my eyes, I see Ashley’s face and the tears in her eyes. I knew I had to get out of there, or I was going to lose it. I wish I held her, kissed her, did something to prove they can’t separate us. They won’t separate us, no matter what stupid rules they put in place.

This is all my fault. I should have never come here tonight, never helped her sneak out. I can’t believe we are back here again, with me causing her pain.

I slam my fist back into my steering wheel over and over again. I don’t even feel the pain this time. The bloody fist prints I’m leaving behind make me smile. Good. I should be bleeding. I deserve it.

“Dude?” Ryan opens the passenger door and slides in, his eyes landing on my fist and the blood on the steering wheel. “So I see it’s going well in here.”

“How’s Ashley?” I ask, ignoring his sarcasm.

“About as good as you, I’m sure, but I don’t really know. She ran upstairs, but not before she screamed at me.”

“At you? Why? What did she say?”

“I tried to stop her, and she screamed, ‘Don’t,’ and pulled away. That was the extent of our conversation.” Ryan smiles.

I know he’s trying to help lighten the mood, but how can he smile right now? Just seeing it turns my stomach.

Ryan drops his smile and his lighthearted tone. “What were you thinking tonight?”

I rest my head back on my headrest and move my gaze to the street in front of us. “I wasn’t, I guess.” I shrug. “I’m in so much trouble. I can’t believe my dad drove over here tonight.”

“Yeah, the scene was not a good one when they found out Ash snuck out, but I’m sorry. I had no idea they called your dad.”

“It’s not your fault. Thanks for the warning, though. At least we had an idea of what we were coming back to.” I take a deep breath as I continue to stare out the front window. “Do you think they’ll change their minds?”

“Not tonight.”

“What are we going to do?” I turn back to Ryan. “I mean, we’re not breaking up.”

ASHLEY

The next thing I know, I’m on my bathroom floor. I’m not even sure how I got here. I don’t think I have ever felt this much anger toward anyone, not RTS, not Casey. I feel so betrayed by my own parents. How could they destroy the most important thing in my life?

I fluctuate between being nauseous and filling with rage. Then I grab my sweatshirt and instantly remember it’s Todd’s. I look down to see the peeling letters of EHS Football and completely lose it. Whatever tears were masked by anger start to pour out of me, so I run the water to cover the sound of my hysterics.

The next thing I know, I’m in the shower and steaming hot water is raining down on me. I feel a small glimmer of happiness. The water feels so good, so refreshing. I just need to stay here forever and pretend like nothing happened: the fight with my parents, the insane command. I don’t think I have ever heard my dad use that word before in my entire life.