Liam's POV The photo on the front page seemed to blur in front of my eyes. It showed a screenshot of a chat. My name was big and bold on one side. On the other side, it said “Alice Hawthorne.” I suddenly felt nauseous.“No…” I said quietly gripping holding the paper tighter. It was real. The date and time were from the day I had agreed to meet Ms. Hawthorne. It was just a simple chat message to confirm the place we'd hangout. But the way the newspaper showed it… made it look wrong.The headline read,“TEACHER-STUDENT SCANDAL AT CRESTWOOD HIGH! ARE LIAM CARTER AND ALICE HAWTHORNE HIDING A SECRET RELATIONSHIP?”Below the picture they showed parts of our chat taken out of context. Like, “Looking forward to spending the night at your place.” next to, “Excited to meet you there.”Then came the worst part. A fake interview with quotes they claimed were from me printed at the bottom.“Anonymous Source Claims 'Liam Admits Standing Up Teacher, Says It Was a Mistake...or a Cover-Up?'“I r

Liam's POV Sarah’s words repeated in my head. “Don’t go home. Come here.” What was so important? The school newspaper Anderson’s crazy punishment Alice slamming the door or the grandma with a shotgun or my car being ruined… It all felt like a bad dream.I stopped the car in front of Sarah’s house, turned off the engine and took a deep breath. This was it. Whatever was going to happen I had to face it. I hoped I could. I got out and walked up the clean path to her front door.Before I could knock the door opened. It was Sarah’s mom Mrs. McGuire. She smiled kindly with her eyes crinkled.“Liam! Come in come in. Sarah’s upstairs. She’s been waiting for you.” Her voice was soothingly calm and strangely different from all the mean things I’d faced today.“Thank you Mrs. McGuire.” I said quietly, stepping inside the house. It was a normal and nice house with a cool atmosphere in a world that had gone crazy. “Is Sarah okay?”“Oh she’s fine. Just a bit excited. You know how she gets when s

Liam's POV“Hans what is it? What's wrong with my mom?” My voice shook with fear I hadn’t felt in a long time.“It’s your mom Liam. Just come to Preston’s Hospital Room 312. Please hurry.” Then the call ended.Preston’s Hospital. I knew that place.. I hit the gas hard with the car speeding as I weaved through the evening traffic while my mind kept thinking the worst. All the stress had been hard on her and now…I skidded into the hospital lot sometime later and ran toward the entrance ignoring the securities annoyed look. I pushed through the doors and ran straight to the reception desk.“Room 312 please! It’s my mom Mrs. Carter.” I said breathlessly.The receptionist looked up and her face softened. “Third floor turn right after the elevators. Room 312 is at the end of the hall.”I didn’t wait. I rushed to the elevators pressing the “up“ button again and again until the doors opened..Finally the doors opened. I ran down the hall checking the room numbers. When I saw 312 I paused,

Liam's POVAll the students of Crestwood High sat tightly packed in the bleachers of the basketball court which were usually for fans but now faced a small stage. A podium stood in the middle of the stage with a microphone attached to it.I sat stiffly in the front row silently observing. Unlike the other students of Crestwood, I knew exactly what was coming. The last two days had been kinda tedious with people whispering, staring and making false claims about me wherever I go. It all started with a fake article in the school paper and now it had all gone way beyond that.Principal Thompson stepped up to the microphone and he cleared his throat loudly with the sound quieting everyone and informing them it was time to be silent.“Good morning everyone.” his voice bboomed across the room. “We are here today to talk about a serious issue that has affected our school.” He paused and scanned all the faces before him. “As you all know an article in the school paper made some claims. These

Liam's POV What were they talking about in there? “Girl talk.” Yeah, right. Like Alice and Sarah had anything in common besides me – the guy who always messed things up. I looked at my watch then stared at the house. The front door didn’t open. Everything was too quiet and it made me feel even worse.At last the door opened and Sarah walked out with a big smile on her face. I felt a bit better but I was also really curious.“So?” I asked as I stepped away from the car. “What were you two talking about?”Sarah’s smile grew. “Get in the car Liam. You’re driving.”“Driving where now? What did you guys talk about?” I asked again following her as she walked to the passenger seat. The way she avoided the question made me nervous.She sat down and buckled her seatbelt quickly. “Just drive Liam. I’ll tell you on the way.”I stopped for a second then walked around and got in the driver’s seat. I stuck the key in, started the car and pulled away from the sidewalk. “Okay I’m driving. Now te