"Last time I checked" Courtney scoffed, "This is school property. Are you a spy for Burkendall High's Football Team?"

She placed her weight on her right foot, letting her right hip stick out.

Alex widened her eyes at the sight of it. Now, that was a stance she found familiar. That usually meant she was looking at a girl with an attitude.

She heard a snort next to her, "Burkendall High? Although I don't actually go to school there, I think the players don't need to do underhanded tricks like that."

"Oh, please. You even sound like you know a lot about them. How could you not be a spy?" Courtney continued.

Alex pressed her lips together and suppressed a smile. She had never been more grateful to her cousin. In one swoop, Emily cleared out the doubts she had in her head about Courtney earlier.  Even if Courtney's sob story turned out to be true, her behavior right now seemed to be good enough reason not to help her at all.

Emily rolled her eyes. Then, she snapped her fingers in front of Courtney's face.

"Wake up, sweet cheeks. Do you even hear yourself? You make it sound like you're asking questions but you're just trying to lure people around you into thinking your ideas about me are real. Well, save your breath, honey" she told Courtney. Looping her arm around Alex's, she made a sickly sweet smile on her lips, "Nothing you'll say can change my boyfriend's mind about me."

Alex froze at Emily's words. The panic that seeped in her mind faded as soon as it came. She hadn't told her cousin that she used the photo to convince people that they had an intimate relationship. Just hearing Emily mention it gave her relief. They hadn't talked about it but, at least, their stories were in sync.

"Now, you're just plain delusional" Courtney replied. She flipped her hair over her shoulder, "I doubt anyone had ever seen you around here before. Who would buy that story?"

"Uh" Emily laughed with mockery, "Doesn't online dating exist? Besides, Alex isn't the type to let the distance between us get in the way of our relationship."

Then, she grabbed also placed her other hand on Alex's arm, showing her full power and giggling like the happy girlfriend she portrayed to be.

When Courtney glared at her, Emily merely responded with a smug smile. Emily could smell her fake personality from meters away. Her own school had a handful of them and she knew just how to handle their schemes.

None of them could trick her or anyone she cared about—especially not on her watch.

She pulled Alex closer to her side. When she gave her last words to Courtney, her voice held nothing but gentle unapologetic tone, "I'd really love to stay and chat with you more but It's been so long since I last saw my boyfriend and I'm dying to spend all my free time with him. Buh-bye now!"

Without waiting for an answer, she turned around and dragged Alex towards the school gate. She yanked Alex's arm lower until her lips reached Alex's ear.

Hissing softly in her cousin's ear, she said, "You are too soft on girls. You need fangs around them, you know."

"Even around you?" Alex couldn't help but tease. She really couldn't help it. Emily's presence had always delighted her no matter what the circumstance. It had been so long since she last saw her cousin. The smell of her perfume fuelled Alex's nostalgia.

Emily had stolen it from her mother's vanity table when she had only been five years old. She had used it ever since. It became 'Emily's' scent.

"Of course" Emily answered. Now that they were a safe distance away, she dropped her act and formed a genuine smile, "You just show them we when you need to. I had been nothing but a good cousin so I doubt you'd need it around me."

Alex cackled a bit, "Sure, you are."

"Excuse me?" Emily squeezed her arm, "Did you just see what I did to free you from your redhead stalker?"

"Yes, I did" Alex chuckled, "Thank you."

"Gratitude won't feed me, my dear cousin. Come on, let's go eat!"

===

"Alex, when, I said 'let's eat', I meant outside. Don't you think you should take your girlfriend out to dinner?"

Emily stood in the middle of her cousin's room, hands on her hips. She didn't think Alex's idea of eating would be at their aunt's house.

She had changed out of her uniform into a pair of cute pajamas she brought with her. The top and bottom both had pastel yellow fluffy cloth with little pink strawberries.

Alex found it hard to take her seriously in it. She threw a pillow at Emily, "Since when did you become so uptight? We've always had pizza, junk food and ice cream during sleepovers. I can take them back."

Emily caught the pillow in her arm and sat on the floor with her legs crossed. She reached for the two pizza boxes in front of her. They smelled too delicious to ignore.

"No, no, no, I'm satisfied" she replied, opening a box. Hot air fanned her face. The pizza looked like it just came fresh out of the oven. She picked the slice that had a bit of cheese bubbling.

Alex watched her slowly take a bite off the pepperoni pizza.

Emily closed her eyes and chewed, her cheeks puffing out a bit. With her mouth still full, she moaned, "Ah, this town really does have great pizza. I think one day this pizza can convince me enough to move."

"I didn't know Aunt Hachi finally opened up to the idea of you moving out" Alex said, sitting across from her. She also took a slice and drizzled some hot sauce on it.

"That won't happen until I turn 18 and attend a university. Then, I'll pick the farthest one I could possibly get into."

"You really want to get out, don't you?"

"A woman has to have her independent life, Alex" Emily explained.

"You're 16."

"Exactly! I'm not a child anymore!"

Alex chose to say nothing and shook her head. Emily had always been practical that it made her seem mature for her age. Aunt Hachi, on the other hand, had to be very strict with her just to be sure Emily hadn't run off somewhere.

"I'm surprised she let you come here" Alex said, swallowing the second to the last bite of her pizza slice, "Even back then, mom had to convince Aunt Hachi to let you stay over."

Emily grinned wickedly, "What makes you think Auntie Angie didn't send me here?"

"Send you?" Alex asked.

"She had this feeling that you might bail out on your agreement about introducing your new friend."

Alex choked. She grabbed the soda can next to her and opened it. She washed down the food stuck in her throat.

She pounded the top of her chest, "You know about that?"

Emily rolled her eyes, "No thanks to someone. So when will I meet this Logan guy?"