When Tawny had arrived back at her dorm room at Ivoree Gates, Maddie was lying on her own bed, staring at the ceiling.

“Tawny...” Maddie leapt out of bed, to greet her friend.

The air between them was tense. Tawny stood beside the door, her hands behind her back. Her face was impassive.

The coolness of Tawny was felt by Maddie, and she stopped a couple feet short of where Tawny stood to give them both distance.

“Before you say anything...” Maddie began. “I just want to say, that what I did? Totally out of line. I should have never....NEVER paid someone to come and attack Ally. That was wrong, and I recognize that it was wrong.

Tawny remained silent, so Maddie continued: “It’s that that...when I first saw you with her...I dunno....it made me think of what I have with you. I don’t want to lose that. I recognize that you had a life before coming here to Ivoree Gates. But I want you to know that my life has been so much better since you’ve come into it.”

Tawny’s eyes widened, but still she said nothing.

Maddie rubbed the back of her head, feeling herself become anxious. “Anyway...I gather that you’re still mad at me. I get that. I can understand if you want me to move out or if you want to find a new dorm room to crash. I just want you to know, that I am really, deeply TRULY sorry about what I did to you and Ally. So...I guess I’ll get out of your hair, then. I’ll start packing.”

Maddie turned around to retrieve her clothes from her dresser for packing.

“Maddie?”

Maddie turned around. She noticed that Tawny had a small smile on her face. Then, very slowly, Tawny revealed what was behind her back: she presented a large bouquet of a dozen yellow roses.

Maddie was nonplussed. “Tawny...I...”

“I’ve had a lot of time to think today,” Tawny said. “And...while I feel justified in feeling the way I do about your actions, I just want you to know that...I forgive you. And I don’t want you to move out. Are you kidding? Ally might be my best friend from the before-times. But here, at Ivoree Gates? It’s all you, Maddie. It’s always been you. You’re my Ivoree Gates Ally.”

Slowly, Maddie approached Tawny, closing the gap between them. Then, without warning, she practically tackled the brunette teen in an affectionate bear hug.

She couldn’t see her face, but Tawny could both feel and hear the audible outpouring of emotion coming from Maddie while in the embrace. She attempted to comfort Maddie by patting her on the back, her dexterity slightly limited by the rose bouquet she was still holding.

“It’s alright,” Tawny said. “Let it out.”

When they finally pulled away, Tawny could see Maddie’s face was red and puffy, her eyes bloodshot from the tears she had shed, and her nose slightly runny. Maddie removed her glasses, which were sopping wet from crying.

“Sorry...” Maddie said, hastily wiping her face with the white sleeve of her school uniform. “It’s just that...after the stunt I pulled, I was convinced that you’d never want to speak to me again. It was tearing me up inside. You mean so much to me, Tawny. More than you could ever possibly know. I--”

Maddie dropped her glasses on the ground. Both girls knelt to pick up the glasses, their hands grazing each other’s very briefly. Tawny scooped up the glasses and handed them to Maddie. They both remained in that awkward squatting position for several seconds.

“Thanks,” Maddie said. “I just...don’t want to lose you.”

“You won’t,” Tawny insisted. “Since I’ve arrived at Ivoree Gates, we’ve been through thick and thin together. I think we can weather this storm.”

Maddie grinned slightly and nodded. They both stood back up and Maddie directed her attention to the bouquet. “They’re beautiful. How did you know yellow was my favourite colour?”

Tawny shrugged. Maddie took the bouquet to her side of the room and emptied an oblong container to use as a makeshift vase to display the roses. She took a few steps back and admired them.

---

The air was finally cleared between Maddie and Tawny. Maddie even went to apologize in person to Ally, who made a quick and miraculous recovery. On Christmas Eve, the two girls saw Ally off as she waited for her taxi to arrive.

“Be sure to say hi to everyone for me,” Tawny said.

“Of course,” Ally said. “And you...” she looked at Maddie, at first seriously, but then softened into a smile. “Take care of her for me, will you? This girl’s precious cargo.”

“Don’t I know it...” Maddie said, wrapping her arm around Tawny affectionately.

“Oh...and we...have a present for you,” Ally said. “Well...more of a peace offering.”

She dug into her backpack and pulled out a small simple box sealed with an orange ribbon. She handed it to Tawny, who seemed surprised.

“It’s okay,” Maddie said. “You don’t have to wait until Christmas. I want you to open it.”

Tawny complied, ripping off the orange ribbon and lifting the lid off the box. Tawny gasped; nestled inside was the latest model of iPhone, protected by a cute, bunny-themed phone case.

“Oh, wow,” Tawny said, stunned.

“Ally confided in me that your phone was kaput,” Maddie said. “I figured the least I could do was help you get a new one. I chipped in the funds, and Ally chose the case. It’s already set to go with your phone number and everything.”

“Wow, you guys...thank you,” Tawny said.

“Come on, let’s get a selfie in before I go!” Ally said. The girls huddled together, Maddie on one side of Tawny and Ally on the other. All three gave big smiles as the flash went off.

“That’s definitely going to be my wallpaper,” Tawny said.

A taxi rolled up in front of the campus. “There’s my ride,” Ally said. “See you around, Maddie and Tawny. Merry Christmas!” And with that, she got into the cab and drove off.

When Ally’s vehicle was out of sight, the two girls returned to their dorm rooms. Tawny plopped down on her bed and admired her new phone. The case was a clear, thick plastic, embedded with sparkles. Plastered all around the case were cute, white bunnies in various stages of idle and hopping poses.

Tawny held the phone to her chest and took in a moment of gratitude, closing her eyes. She had an amazing gift, by two of her most special people in the entire world. She was halfway done the semester, and was slowly but surely gaining the respect of her peers, despite her station in life.

She smiled; finally things were going her way.

Her phone vibrated. Tawny looked at the caller ID - a number she didn’t recognize came up on the screen.

She accepted the call. “Hello?”

“Hi...this is Tawny, right? Tawny Matthews?”

“Yes? Who’s calling?”

“My name’s Garrett Landers. I’m a neighbour of your mother’s. Me and Mrs. Landers here are taking good care of your baby sister.”

“What?” Tawny sat up abruptly on the bed, alarm starting to creep in. “Why do you have Gabby? Where’s my mom?”

There’s was a slight beat, then Garrett spoke again. “Haven’t you heard? Your mother’s in the hospital, Tawny.”