"WHAT!?" my group asked, sounding shocked and surprised that my father was on his way home and that they had to leave without completing everything that we normally did on days like this.

"Hmmm." I nodded and made up my mind about something, pressing my lips into a thin line. "Grams, can you take Clarissa somewhere? Maybe to the second apartment? The rest of you, scram. We might do something later this weekend, but you aren't staying here."

"Absolut-"

"Grams, please," I said and shook my head, interrupting her, even though I didn't look at her from the corner of my eye. "I do not need you all to be here when he is here, especially Clarissa."

"But what about you?" Drew asked and raised an eyebrow in question while he studied me. "I do-"

"I won't be alone," I said, interrupting him with a shake of my head. "Wally and I have already set up a plan in place. Speaking of which, phone, please, Ethan." I held out my hand for my best friend to put my phone in.

Ethan hesitated and handed it to me, and I grunted in thanks. "What is the plan?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

"It's nothing for you to worry about, Ethan," I said coldly with a shake of my head. I sent Wally a quick text to let him know what was up and for him to contact some of the cop friends we have made.

"You seriously want us to go and leave you alone?" Sheamus asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

"Yes," I said and nodded in confirmation, "and I suggest that you leave now while you have the chance."

"What about all of the food?"

"Take 'em," I said and looked at my phone to see that I had more text messages from my father, calling me stupid and whatever. "I am not going to eat them."

"Christina Farley!" my grandmother exclaimed, and I rolled my eyes and pressed my lips into a thin line.

"Look, the less you know, the better," I said and shook my head. "I will be fine, and I will not do anything stupid, Grams. I have kind of figured out that something like this would happen, but in all honesty, I thought it would have happened earlier."

They looked at each other and pressed their lips onto a thin line. They didn't say a word, didn't move and I could tell that they were worried and afraid of what could happen.

"Go," I said and gestured for them to leave the room. "I will explain what happened after it happened. You can't be here or be near this place when everything happens. I do not want you all to get involved." I looked at Drew when I said that, and Drew set his jaw and narrowed his eyes.

"But we are already involved," Marucs said and looked between the two of us before he looked solely at me. "I mean, we are already here, Chris. What else do you expect from us?"

I bit back a tired sigh and shook my head, pursing my lips in annoyance. "Please," I said and tucked my head closer to my chest while I stared at them. "Go. Now before you can't leave and could potentially get hurt."

"But you can get hurt, Chris," Drew said and shook his head, and I looked at him. "I-"

"And I will be fine," I said and shook my head, interrupting him. I offered him a grim smile and tucked my head closer to my chest, silently praying that he wouldn't continue to fight and not break character. "Like I said before, I have plans set up in place if this happens."

My phone buzzed, and I looked at my phone to see that it was Wally texting or another round of flurry text messages that were sent from my father.

'The plan is in place. Are you still sure to do this?' he had written, and I could feel him raise an eyebrow in question through that text while giving me a disapproving look.

'Yes,' I replied with pursed lips in annoyance and bit back a tired sigh. 'Make sure that you do what you are told to do and don't change anything that we had discussed. I'll be fine.'

Instantly, he texted me back, saying, 'ok and be careful. You promised.'

I bit back a small smirk and tucked my head closer to my chest while responding with, 'always.'

Ethan sighed and shook his head, and I glanced up from my phone so that I could look at him with a small frown on my face, looking at him annoyed. "No one is going to change your mind, are they, Chris?" Ethan asked and raised an eyebrow in question. He moved a hand through his hair and shook his head while he pursed his lips in annoyance.

"No," I said and shook my head, pressing my lips into a thin line. "You as well as I do know how hard it is to change my mind after I have thought about it. That means, I do need all of you out of the house and for you all to stop arguing with me because it will be a wasted breath." I looked at Drew when I said that.

Ethan sighed and slowly nodded, relenting while he pressed his lips into a thin line. "Ok," he said, letting the annoyance and frustration fill his voice. "Then come on. Let's go."

"And leave my granddaughter here?" my grandmother asked, shocked and aghast about what we were going to do. "Asol-"

"I won't be alone, Grams," I said and shook my head while I interrupted her. "I have people watching over me and standing by if I need them. I don't need Clarissa to see this or anything that is going to happen. I don't need her to be surrounded by something that could potentially be fatal."

"But you are barely eighteen-year-old, Christina Farley," Grams said and gestured toward me with a scowl on her face and narrowed eyes. "You s-"

"And I am a seventeen-year-old that had already been in many fights and had almost been sent to prison on more than one occasion," I said and gave her a pointed look, silently asking her not to make me say some of the stuff I had been through out loud.

I didn't trust Clarissa with that information...

My grandmother sighed and slowly nodded, relenting, pursing her lips in annoyance. "Just be careful, Dear," she said and patted my cheek. "I do not want to bury my granddaughter because of something stupid that she had planned."

"Gr-"

"Hush," she said, interrupting one of the boys from talking and saying something else. "Now, come, let's all go home and make sure that we don't ruin Christana's plan."

She paused and scowled, wagging her finger and narrowing her eyes while she stared at me. "If something bad happens to you, then I hope that you know that you are grounded until I release you from you being grounded. Is that understood?"

I bit back a tired smirk and slowly nodded. "Understood, Grams. I'll call you as soon as everything is done and taken care of. Now, please, go before it is too late."

My grandmother pressed her lips into a thin line and nodded before she and everyone else without saying a word, sending curious and worried looks my way.

I watched as they went by, standing at attention with my hands behind my back and one hand clasped around my wrist and trying but failing to keep them from shaking.

And as soon as Drew left, being the last one and not coming toward me when I shot him a scathing look that not to do anything stupid, I released a breath that I hadn't known I had been holding with a tired sigh.

My whole body sagged in defeat and the weight of the world seemed to appear on my shoulders before I picked up my mask and became stoic while I called a number of someone that I knew would be able to help me in the long run.

And as soon as I had my phone to my ear, the ringing stopped, and I was met with a grunt as if the other person was asking, "what?" without saying a word.

And without calling on their behavior because I was used to this, I only said, "it's time," before I hung up the phone and slowly made my way up the steps, praying that no one got any big ideas and stayed behind without my knowledge.

It was time...