Sitting on the ground with his back against the wall of the courtyard, Justin had to look up to make eye contact with Siri, something he wasn’t used to doing with anyone, much less the petite girl sitting on the bench beside him. One of his long legs lay stretched out in front of him, the other knee was raised so that he could rest his arm on it. Still, his ever gentle chocolate colored eyes sparkled in the moon light as he gazed up at one of his closest friends.

He listened intently as she listed off a few ideas, though none of them seemed to fit quite as well as Cinderella. It wasn’t just the blonde princess portion that caught the seventh year’s attention. No, he thought everything about the idea of going as Prince Charming and Cinderella was perfect. Schuyler deserved a night away from the horrors, a night to be just another teenaged girl. She deserved to be able to go without worrying about the next nightmare that might come true, the next girl to die in the forest. She had been through so much and was so shy, he just wanted to prove to her that everything was going to be fine, that he wasn’t going to let anything happen to her. He truly cared for the girl, and just going as some princess didn’t seem to fit quite right with the mental image Justin continued to see every time he closed his eyes.

He shrugged as she suggested just a generic prince and princess. Of course he couldn’t expect Siri to understand. He hadn’t even hinted at the horrors he was forced to go through as a child to her, much less the similar nightmares Schuyler had to go through. Sure, Siri was one of his best friends, but he made a promise to Sarah and to himself, no one was to find out about what happened at home. He swore the same secrecy about Schuyler’s family life. He wasn’t about to go against that, and he certainly didn’t want Siri feeling sorry for him. That was part of the reason he kept it from everyone. He didn’t need the sympathy, he wanted to be treated like a normal teenager, besides why worry someone else with his issues. It just didn’t seem right to him.

He forced a smile at her suggestion, nodding in agreement. ”I’ll keep all of those suggestions in mind,” he offered. Not really wanting to dwell on the subject, he directed the conversation more onto the girl beside him. ”So how many guys have asked you to the ball?” he asked, his tone light and joking, as if he expected a ridiculously large number. After all, Siri was a beautiful girl. He just didn’t see her in that way. She was more his sister than anything.